North East Ambulance Service will be investigated "more thoroughly" a Government minister confirmed in the Commons this afternoon.
Health Minister Maria Caulfied told MPs she was “horrified” to read claims the ambulance trust covered up evidence about deaths linked to mistakes made by paramedics in The Sunday Times.
The newspaper reported concerns were raised about more than 90 cases, with the paper saying whistleblowers believed the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) blocked relatives from knowing the full details about how their loved ones died in 2018 and 2019.
Ms Caulfield pledged to meet the families affected, the ambulance trust and the coroner, and said she wanted to hear from the whistleblowers.
She told MPs in the Commons: “My thoughts are first and foremost with the families affected by the tragic events described.
“I cannot imagine the distress they’re going through and it’s hard enough to lose a loved one suddenly.
“But to have fears that mistakes were made that could have made a difference and, more than that, the facts of what happened were not revealed in every case, goes further.
“They have my unreserved sympathy and support.”
Ms Caulfield said non-disclosure agreements have “no place in the NHS ”, adding: “Reputation management is never more important than patient safety.”
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting asked: “Why did the CQC fail to spot this, rating the service good in 2018, and failing to spot it even after being tipped off in 2020?
“Why is taxpayers’ money still being offered to buy the silence of staff when non-disclosure agreements were supposedly banned in 2014? And what role did under-resourcing and under-staffing play in this scandal?”
Ms Caulfield said the Government takes patient safety “extremely seriously”, adding in reply to Labour : “I am very happy to meet with all the families affected by this, to hear about their concerns and the actions that they want to see taken.”
The minister said she would be meeting the NEAS, and added: “I also want to meet with the coroner, and we also want to hear from the whistleblowers.
“I am very happy to meet with any member of staff who wants to raise concerns with me so we can get to the bottom of exactly what has happened.”
