"The Government has been put on notice," said one North East victim of the contaminated blood scandal after a dramatic day of evidence which saw former Health Secretary Andy Burnham call for charges of corporate manslaughter to be considered by the CPS.
Northumberland -based Sean Cavens - who was infected with hepatitis C as a baby and is one of the youngest people to have been caught up in the scandal which saw thousands given blood products tainted with lethal viruses - told ChronicleLive how Mr Burnham's evidence was welcome.
Ahead of Mr Burnham's testimony, Sir Brian Langstaff, the former High Court judge who is leading the inquiry, gave the Government until July 25 to "make submissions" as to whether he ought to recommend interim compensation be paid to thousands. This came after two days of evidence from Sir Robert Francis, who had been tasked with drawing up a framework for compensation.
Speaking to the Inquiry, Mr Burnham said, as reported by MirrorOnline : "I think the Department of Health, and the bodies for which it is responsible, have been grossly negligent of the safety of the haemophiliac community in this country. From there I would say there is even a possibility that the CPS should be asked to consider charges of corporate manslaughter."
He added: "I don't say that lightly... I have got a lot of regard for people in the DoH, but I think on this issue they have got it fundamentally wrong from the off, from the 1970s onwards." Mr Burnham was Health Secretary during 2009 and 2010. However, at the time like ministers from both main parties in the decades before him, he declined to back calls for a public inquiry.
However, in his last act as an MP, he spoke in parliament of what he called a "criminal cover-up" over the contaminated blood scandal. Speaking last Friday at the ongoing Inquiry, he said he had "been on a journey" and that his involvement with the Justice for the 96 Hilllsborough campaign had "opened his eyes".
North East campaigners like Jesmond's Carol Grayson have previously spoken about how hard - and vainly - they fought to get Mr Burnham's attention while he was in charge of the Department of Health.
Sir Brian Langstaff had opened the day's hearing by giving the Government and any other public bodies ten days to offer submissions before he makes a decision about whether to recommend that interim compensation payments are paid. Earlier in the week Sir Robert Francis had given evidence highlighting how he had come to put together a framework which said there was a "strong moral case" for compensation for those infected and affected by contaminated blood.
Sir Brian said: "He felt compelled by what he had heard to urge that significant sums should be paid as an interim measure. He told us that the sooner compensation gets into people’s hands, the more effective it is. And as we have always known in this Inquiry, time is not on their side."
Reacting to the day's events, Sean added: "The Government have been put on notice Sadly we’ve got chaos in our country, 15 days of [Government] sitting between now and October, so who knows what movement will happen quickly, but today gives us a little bit more hope and a feeling of getting closer to justice."
He said Mr Burnham's candour and acceptance of errors and a "cover-up" within the Department of Health added it was "a long time coming for someone to admit they got it wrong". He added:: "The culture of coverup must change." The Inquiry continues and is expected to conclude late this year and make final recommendations in early 2023.
A Government spokesperson said: "The conduct of the statutory independent inquiry, including setting deadlines for submissions, is a matter for the Chair of the Inquiry. Government will carefully consider any recommendation he makes."
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