Cabinet Office

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 22nd July 2019 Ministerial Corrections

The following is an extract from questions to the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office on 10 July 2019.

[Diana Johnson]

The Minister is absolutely right, but with one victim dying every 96 hours and compensation still not being paid, I wrote to the Prime Minister, along with seven Opposition party leaders, to ask for compensation to be paid now. The Prime Minister has refused. I then wrote to the two Conservative party leadership candidates on 21 June, because they are making huge spending commitments, but I have not had the courtesy of a response. Perhaps the Minister could help me with that.

[Mr Lidington]

I am happy to try to prompt a response to the hon. Lady’s letter. She will know that the Department of Health and Social Care has announced a major uplift in the financial support available to beneficiaries of the infected blood scheme in England, and talks are now going on with the devolved Governments about trying to get a UK-wide agreement. Questions of legal liability fall therefore to compensation and are expressly a matter for the independent inquiry.

[Official Report, 10 July 2019, Vol. 663, c. 302.]

Letter of correction from the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office.

An error has been identified in the response I gave to the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Diana Johnson).

The correct response should have been: