Contaminated Blood

Jenny Willott Excerpts

Monday 10th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lansley]

With respect to the hon. Gentleman, in response to previous questions I made it very clear that the question was not simply about the amount of money. The situation in the Republic of Ireland is unique in respect of its determination of liability because of mistakes made by the Irish Blood Transfusion Service. To that extent, we are making ex gratia payments. The nature of our payments stands comparison to other countries, particularly now, in respect of hepatitis C and my announcements this afternoon.

[Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central) (LD)]

I really welcome today’s statement and, in particular, the apology, which will go a long way to ease some of the pain that some of the victims have suffered. Proper support for those infected with hepatitis C is also long overdue. Gareth Lewis, who was a leading Taintedblood campaigner—I believe he met the Under Secretary—tragically died just before Christmas, only a few months after his brother, Haydn, whom the hon. Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) mentioned. That highlights the urgency of my question. Governments are not known for moving quickly, particularly when it involves handing out money, so will the Secretary of State reassure us that everything that can be done will be done to ensure that the payments announced today are made as soon as is humanly possible?

[Mr Lansley]

May I pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has on many occasions spoken up on behalf of her constituents and others who were affected by the tainted blood and blood products? The answer to her question is yes—absolutely we will. When we came into office, we were determined to implement the review. As she said, we sought to complete the review before Christmas—technically speaking, we did, but we were not in a position to announce it before Christmas. We are doing this at the first available moment, and we will do everything that we possibly can to ensure that potential beneficiaries are notified and reached as quickly as possible so that the payments are in place as soon as possible.