After Government figures met with some victims of the contaminated blood scandal this week, campaigners in the North East have hit out at being excluded - and questioned whether the impending departure of top civil servant Sue Gray will further delay their search for justice.
The contaminated blood scandal saw thousands, especially haemophiliacs, infected with lethal viruses like hepatitis C and HIV through tainted NHS blood products. The Government has taken almost a year to respond in full to a key report put together by Sir Robert Francis KC - which laid out a potential framework for compensating those infected and affected by the scandal, which has been repeatedly described as the biggest ever NHS treatment disaster.
The Government awarded interim compensation to some, but not all, of those affected last year, but has been criticised for slow progress in responding to the 19 recommendations Sir Robert made. Pushed to explain its progress, it held a meeting with some campaign groups this week.
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However longstanding Jesmond campaigner Carol Grayson, whose husband and brother-in-law were both killed by receiving blood products contaminated with HIV to treat their haemophilia, was not invited. Carol - and husband Peter - set Haemophilia Action UK in the 1990s and were instrumental in tracing "bad batches" of blood factor products that Peter and others received.
Carol also pushed the Journal's Bad Blood campaign in the early 2000s with reporter Louella Houldcroft. However, despite her decades of campaigning, she was not among those invited to the meeting. The campaign group Factor 8 were present.
Carol said this amounted to the "cancelling out" of herself and campaigners such as her friend and colleague Colette Wintle. Both women were subject to tributes from lawyers during closing statements at the Infected Blood Inquiry - investigating the circumstances around the scandal and its fallout - last month. She called for there to be a further meeting held.
She said: "We have had no representation at the Cabinet Office meeting as neither the APPG for Haemophilia and Contaminated Blood nor Terrence Higgins Trust, nor other campaign groups represent Colette Wintle and I. We have campaigned for over three decades and have always represented ourselves."
This comes as the decision of civil servant Sue Gray to leave her role in the Cabinet Office to become the chief of staff to Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer is understood to have added another delay to the Government's full response to Sir Robert Francis. Ms Gray was the sponsoring official for this work, as disclosed by Paymaster General Jeremy Quin in the House of Commons shortly before Christmas.
Northumberland's Sean Cavens - one of the youngest victims of the scandal after being infected with hepatitis as an infant in Scotland - said the delays added to the distrust victims have for the Government. He said: "Are they still hoping they can get off with the harm they have caused? When does their incompetence in preparing for harm end? Each moment they delay or use excuses (such as Sue Gray's resignation) causes harm."
Speaking in the House of Commons in response to a question about Sue Gray's departure, minister Jeremy Quin said: "Sue Gray was actually the sponsor of that inquiry inside the Cabinet Office, and I am looking forward to meeting members of the infected and affected community tomorrow.
"Sue Gray had an incredibly important role in corralling that across Government, and we will need to fill that post. I have not been able to do so to date, but that is a huge priority for me. It requires a lot of work and there are very serious stakes."
Earlier, asked if Sue Gray's departure had impacted on work dealing with the Sir Robert Francis report, a Government spokesperson said: "The infected blood scandal should never have happened. The Government has paid interim compensation to those eligible, but this was only the first step. Work continues to prepare for the conclusions and recommendations of the Infected Blood Inquiry later this year."
The Cabinet Office had no further comment when asked about how the invite list for Tuesday's meeting was drawn up amid Carol Grayson's concerns about being excluded.
The ongoing Infected Blood Inquiry is set to see former High Court judge Sir Brian Langstaff report back later in 2023.
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