Andy Burnham has suggested there may be a case for allegations of corporate manslaughter in connection with the contaminated blood scandal, as it challenged Conservative leadership candidates to commit to paying interim compensation to infected survivors.
The former health secretary, now mayor of Greater Manchester, wrote to each of the five remaining candidates on Friday to match their tests to the infected blood investigation.
Public research is examining what has been described as the biggest treatment disaster in NHS history, with some 3,000 people believed to have died and thousands more infected. Hemophiliacs became infected after receiving factor VIII blood products, which used HIV-contaminated blood and hepatitis C imported from the United States in the 1970s and 1980s. Other people became infected as a result of exposure to contaminated blood through transfusions or after delivery.
The investigation has heard evidence that the government knew of the problem long before admitting it and that the scandal was preventable.
In letters to Conservative leadership candidates, Burnham said: “In preparing for my session, I carefully reviewed a substantial amount of documentation. I also remembered my many conversations with victims over the years. All of this m has led to a clear conclusion: that the Department of Health, and the bodies for which it is responsible, have been grossly negligent with the safety of people in the hemophilia community for five decades to the point that even there may be a case to apply to the CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] consider charges of corporate manslaughter. “
Burnham, who was also chief secretary of the Treasury, said after Sir Robert Francis QC told the investigation earlier this week about his recommendation in a government-commissioned report that surviving infected people should receive a payment minimum provisional compensation of £ 100,000.
Francis said waiting until the end of the investigation to pay compensation runs the risk of people dying in the meantime, before they could do their business.
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Referring to Francis’ evidence, Burham wrote in the letters: “There is concern that the leadership elections in which you are participating are delaying a decision on this vital issue. This could be avoided if all remaining candidates were willing to undertake now to make an interim payment of the rate recommended by Sir Robert within a few days of taking office as Prime Minister.
“This commitment by all five would allow the civil service to start working now with the necessary arrangements and therefore minimize further delays, difficulties and anxiety for those affected. Are you ready to make that promise?”
As strong evidence of the investigation in central London, Burnham said officials had provided “inaccurate lines” to ministers about the scandal “mainly motivated by fear of financial exposure”. He was applauded by the audience when he said the government had “failed miserably” on the victims of the contaminated blood scandal for five decades and expressed hope that the investigation would fix that.
He said that, knowing what he knew now, he would never have sent a 2009 letter to an infected person saying that “there is no evidence that individuals were consciously infected with contaminated blood and blood products.”
Before Burnham began his trial, the chairman of the investigation, Sir Brian Langstaff, said that in light of Francis’ evidence, he was considering using his powers to make a recommendation before the end of the investigation to pay a provisional compensation. Langstaff gave the main participants, including the government, until 5pm on July 25 to file allegations on the matter.