To be so completely shocked by the blood scandal

[ChristmasGutPunch]

I knew a lot of children got sick and died in later life but I thought it was a terrible accident or oversight. A mistake because we didn't know any better. I had no idea there was a conscious decision to infect small boys on purpose to see what happened. How can this possibly have happened? How come I didn't realise the full extent until now??

If I were an affected family member I'd want to murder those involved. It's unbearable.

It’s completely horrific in every way!

Something similar happened in France and those responsible were all prosecuted!

What is happening in uk?

Yes - the authorities were waiting for people to die so they had to pay out less £.

I hope those responsible are brought to justice (as much as possible now).
For at least part of it to have been deliberate experimental infection is appalling.
Also awful (tho less 'shocking' to me at least) is the decades long cover-up.

I hope the current Govt do not use this as an excuse to shut down what is left of the NHS. We could 'build back better' if we wanted to: it suits Govt not to tho.

We have no right to point the finger at the corruption in other countries when the UK is just as bad if not worse

Well done Sir Brian Langstaff.

Now let's hope every single individual who knew is forced to finally take responsibility, personally.

There is a fantastic podcast about the scandal. Series 2 of Bed of Lies.

I hope that includes more help AND RESPECT for family members who are carers, there is a very eye opening thread on the elderly parents board describing how several bodies including the NHS treat family carers. Emotional blackmail, bullying and downright lies in a lot of cases.

Nothing.
The inquiry hasn't the power to call for criminal action.

Burnham has called for it, brave considering he was Health Sec.

To me, this compensation thing is purely down to the Tories believing they wont be in power to find the money, £ billions of it.

But one of the most decent things the Tories have done over the last 14 years is Theresa May instigating this inquiry BUT why has it take 7 years to get to this stage???

We should be angry, we should be bloody livid at the lack of rigour in the governance and application of regulations in our country.

We should be able to go to hospital and have treatment without coming to even greater harm (the blood scandal, the horrendous maternity issues suffered by so many, the MRSA scandal, PPE and so on).

We should be able to got to a music concert and be safe (the Manchester bombings).

We should be able to go to a football match and come back alive (Hillsborough).

We should be able to work in a post office and not fear going to prison for doing our job (Horizon).

So many public inquiries, so many ‘lessons learned’ and yet these things keep occurring. There is no rigour in the governance of this country. Our press no longer holds the powerful to account. As a society we are so passive, so brow beaten. In France there would be uproar, in the UK we just accept it.

The concrete in schools and public buildings is the next disaster waiting to happen.

We deserve better Government that actually serves us, the people and not big business.

Today, I am thinking of the two girls I grew up with, we were patients regularly treated together in hospital. They have since died due to Hepatitis C. I don’t know how I was not infected, I was incredibly lucky. I count my blessings daily but god am I bloody angry for those that have suffered and been denied justice.

We should be able to live in social housing without fear of shoddy workmanship and doing things on the cheap killing or injuring us

The NHS is broken. I have worked previously for many many years as a supplier to Local and Health Authorities. They constantly bum cover, have various levels of middle management some of which I never knew what they did!

They want to cling onto their roles, will not welcome any new technology because they cannot be bothered to learn new systems and need to hang their heads in shame here.

It doesnt surprise me that records are lost, people cannot remember, nothing to do with me guv type responses. We need a serious cross party conversation about changing the way the NHS work. Its a complete disgrace.

I feel like I've heard about this scandal all my life - it was shocking enough that people had not been compensated for the mistake, but bloody hell, it was deliberate!

Also see the vaginal mesh scandal

The infected blood scandal happened in Ireland too.
Just awful.

"Just 32 of the 122 haemophiliacs who attended the school from 1974 to 1987 are still alive today. Most died after contracting HIV or viral hepatitis."

This is just shocking

Sunak just said that these people died of aids through no fault of their own.
Agreed it was totally not their fault but then those who contracted it other ways are not to blame either.

I'm not even remotely shocked, though "surprised" might be a better word; why would I be when the culture of denial and covering up is so pervasive?

Rishi and the rest will no doubt enjoy a bit of self-flagellation because they're pretending it's historic, and the issue of using infected blood may well be.
Unfortunately the underlying culture carries on, as we've seen with recent cases such as Lucy Letby's, and good luck expecting anything to be done about it

...apart from this blood scandal happened across Europe too, which has health systems we apparently want to copy?

The difference is that countries such as France dealt with the issues years ago, jailing those who let us all down.... we give them a Knighthood.

To follow on from a pp, Sunaks apology was pointless and nasty, no one contracted AIDS/Hep A B or C through their own fault, terrible thing to say.

It's just horrific. Experimenting on children too. Those responsible and complicit should be named publicly and their faces in the papers. My heart breaks for the victims. Evil bastards.

I was listening to Jeremy Vine on Radio 2 on Friday. He had the parents of a little boy called Colin on. He was given infected blood and died in 1982 aged 7.

It’s such a horrific story, I ended up sobbing in the car at Asda. I hope his parents get the verdict they need.

They all knew, Thatcher knew & so did Labour ministers, they knew this had happened years ago and did SFA, including Blair and Sunak now.....

I don't blame the medics as such but the people in charge who allowed it, & failed to provide the NHS with the facilities to make our own blood products despite being told too by ministers.

Dr David Owen (ex Health Sec) actually wrote papers on this very subject in the 70s.....
Ignored.

Actually you're incorrect. If you read up in detail what happened in other countries you'll find out that the issues related to infected blood varied from country to country and no other European country knowingly risked its citizens' lives for as long as the United Kingdom did. No other European country witheld information for as long as the UK did and avoided paying out compensation. No other European country infected 30,000 people writing up a death sentence for them.

Educate yourself first. We don't even have a third world government and healthcare system here anymore, it's the fourth world knowingly harming people and then repeating mantras denying the reality for decades.

Medics are to blame too - their first and foremost duty is to do no harm to their patients.

There is no way on earth haemophilia consultants were blind, deaf and stupid enough not to know from around early to mid 1980s that untreated blood could carry HIV. They knew that about Hep-C since WW2. So yes, they absolutely are to blame because they should've refused to give these products to their patients, simple as. If they weren't given to patients because the doctors refused there would have been pressure on the government to source safer products based on heat treated blood which were available from around 1983.

Very funny, you obviously never read my 2nd paragraph.....

The difference is that countries such as France dealt with the issues years ago, jailing those who let us all down.... we give them a Knighthood

I've just listened to one of the campaigners say exactly what i posted earlier... the UK dragged its heels and continued to allow people to die... as i posted.

Don't know why you decided to have a go at me?

I read your full post, including the first paragraph:

...apart from this blood scandal happened across Europe too, which has health systems we apparently want to copy?

You are wrong, I've explained why, and your above post makes no sense.

We should be striving to have healthcare systems closer to European quality. They are superior to ours. Some Asian healthcare systems also are, but not many.

gosh those stories are heartbreaking.
I received a blood transfusion in the 90s and was never told there was any risks and that would have only been a few years after all that happened!