Sunak says infected blood inquiry report marks a ‘day of shame for British state’ and offers ‘unequivocal apology’ – UK politics live

• The scandal that caused thousands of people in the UK to become infected or die from contaminated blood was avoidable and inflamed by a “subtle, pervasive and chilling” cover-up by the NHS and government, a scathing report has concluded.

• Politicians “should hang their heads in shame” over the contaminated blood scandal, victims’ groups have said, and warned of future disasters because lessons have not been learned.

• Rishi Sunak has issued a “wholehearted and unequivocal apology” to the victims. (See 6.01pm.) He also said the government would pay comprehensive compensation, whatever the cost. The Labour leader Keir Starmer also apologised, saying that the victims were failed by all parties, including his own. (See 5.36pm.)

• A survivor of a school at the centre of the contaminated blood scandal where pupils were viewed as “cheaper than chimps” says he feels vindication by Monday’s report after decades of campaigning.

• The government expects to have spent at least £4.7bn on introducing post-Brexit border controls, which have been repeatedly hit by delays, the public spending watchdog has warned.

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Here is the full text of Rishi Sunak’s statement about the infected blood scandal report.

And here is the full apology.

Today, I want to speak directly to the victims and their families – some of whom are with us in the gallery.

I want to make a wholehearted and unequivocal apology for this terrible injustice.

First, to apologise for the failure in blood policy and blood products, and the devastating - and so often fatal – impact this had on so many lives, including the impact of treatments that were known or proved to be contaminated.

The failure to respond to the risk of imported concentrates.

The failure to prioritise self-sufficiency in blood.

The failure to introduce screening services sooner.

And the mismanagement of the response to the emergence of AIDS and hepatitis viruses amongst infected blood victims.

Second, to apologise for the repeated failure of the State and our medical professionals to recognise the harm caused.

This includes the failure of previous payments schemes, the inadequate levels of funding made available, and the failure to recognise Hepatitis B victims.

And third, to apologise for the institutional refusal to face up to these failings – and worse, to deny and even attempt to cover them up.

The dismissing of reports and campaigners’ detailed representations.

The loss and destruction of key documents including Ministerial advice and medical records.

And the appalling length of time it took to secure the public inquiry which has delivered the full truth today.

Mr Speaker, layer upon layer of hurt, endured across decades.

This is an apology from the state - to every … single … person … impacted by this scandal.

It did not have to be this way.

It should never have been this way.

And on behalf of this and every government stretching back to the 1970s, I am truly sorry.

Diana Johnson was the last MP called to ask a question.

After the statement was over Pete Wishart (SNP) used a point of order to complain about Sunak not staying for longer. He asked what could be more important. But he was angrily rebuked by Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker, who claimed he had already addressed this point. He said the decision to keep the PM’s statement very short (normally they last for an hour or more) was intended to ensure that today was “about the families”.

Diana Johnson, the Labour chair of the home affairs committee and chair of the all-party parliamentay group on haemophilia and contaminated blood, asked Sunak if he accepted that his refusal to accept Sir Brian Langstaff’s interim recommendation last year, that he should set up a compensation scheme ahead of publication of the final report, had made situation worse for victims.

Sunak said no one could fail to be moved by hearing the victims’ stories. But he did not address Johnson’s point about the interim recommendation that was ignored.

Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, asked Sunak if he agreed that there should be a new duty of candour on all public officials.

Sunak said the government would offer a fuller response tomorrow.

Theresa May, who was the prime minister who set up the inquiry, said she hoped that in response politicians and civil servants would “recognise that their job is to serve the public and not to protect themselves”.

Stephen Flynn, the SNP leader at Westminster, said that the scandal represented “the very worst of Westminster decades”.

He also offered an apology on behalf of the SNP. He said:

First an apology. I’m incredibly sorry that this happened to you.

(This was more of an ‘I’m sorry this has happened’ apology than a ‘I’m sorry for what I did’ one. Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer are not to blame for what past governments were doing, but their parties were. Flynn could adopt a slightly different tone because the SNP was never in power at Westminster during the period when this scandal was happening and being covered up.)

Starmer also said Labour would work with the government to ensure compensation is paid.

Keir Starmer said welcomed what Sunak said in his statement, and his promise to pay full compensation.

He said that the victims had been failed by all parties.

I want to acknowledge to every single person who has suffered that in addition to all of the other failings, politics itself failed you.

That failure applies to all parties, including my own.

There is only one word: sorry.

Sunak ended his speech with what he described as two solemn promises.

He said the government would pay “comprehensive compensation” accepting the principles recommended by Sir Brian Langstaff.

Whatever it costs to deliver this scheme, we will pay it.

And he said the government would respond to Langstaff’s recommendations to address the culture behind this. He said it was necessary to “fundamentally rebalance the system so we finally addressed this pattern, so familiar from other inquiries like Hillsborough, [where] linnocent victims have to fight for decades just to be believed”.

Sunak went on with his apology

Second, [I want to] to apologise for the repeated failure of the state and our medical professionals to recognise the harm caused. This includes the failure of previous payment schemes, the inadequate levels of funding made available, and the failure to recognise Hepatitis C victims.

And third, to apologise for the institutional refusal to face up to these failings and worse, to deny and even attempt to cover them up, the dismissing of reports and campaigners … the loss and destruction of key documents including ministerial advice and medical medical records, and the appalling length of time it took to secure the public inquiry which is delivered the full truth today.

Layer upon layer of hurt, endured across decades.

This is an apology from the state to every single person impacted by the scandal.

It did not have to be this way. It should never have been this way. And on behalf of this and every government stretching back to the 1970s I am truly sorry.

Sunak says he wants to speak directly to the victims and their families, some of whom are in the gallery.

I want to make a wholehearted and unequivocal apology for this terrible injustice.

First, to apologise for the failure in blood policy … and the devastating and so often fatal impact it has had on so many lives, including the impact of treatments that were known or proven to be contaminated, the failure to respond to the risk of imported concentrates, the failure to prioritise self sufficiency in blood and the failure to introduce screening services sooner, and the mismanagement of the response to the emergence of AIDS and hepatitis C amongst infected blood victims.

Sunak says he finds it “almost impossible to comprehend how it must have felt to be told you had been infected through no fault of your own with HIV or hepatitis C”

He goes on

Many of those infected went on to develop horrific conditions, including cirrhosis, liver cancer, pneumonia, TB and AIDS, enduring debilitating treatments … for these illnesses, illnesses the NHS had given them.

Many were treated distinctly by healthcare professionals who made appalling assumptions about the origin of their affections.

Worse still, they were made to think that they were imagining it made to feel stupid.

Sunak says patients were let down.

And he expresses particular horror at what happened to children at the Lord Mayor Treloar College. (See 1.37pm.)

Rishi Sunak is speaking now. Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker, says he will only take a few MPs today, because there will be a longer statement on this from the Cabinet Office minister John Glen tomorrow.

Sunak says this is a day of shame.

This is a day of shame for the British state.

Today’s report shows a decade-long moral failure at the heart of our national life, from the National Health Service to the civil service to ministers in successive governments at every level, that people and institutions in which we place our trust failed in the most harrowing and devastating way.

Rishi Sunak is about to give his statement to MP on the infected blood scandal.

Clive Smith, chair of the Haemophilia Society, is one of the campaigners who has been invited to the Commons to hear it.

Politicians “should hang their heads in shame” over the contaminated blood scandal, victims’ groups have said, and warned of future disasters because lessons have not been learned. Rachel Hall has the story here.

The Conservative MP whose constituents are affected by the Brixham water contamination incident in Devon told the Commons that it was “totally unacceptable” that thousands of people still could not trust their water supply.

Anthony Mangnall, MP for Totness, told MPs during an urgent question:

The anger in Brixham is palpable, the frustration is apparent, and the sheer inconvenience that has been put on them by South West Water is absolutely abhorrent.”

For 24 hours people were still able to drink the water, South West Water continued to say there was no problem. The reason that people are ill and 46 is most certainly an underestimation, is because of that time period in which people were able to go on drinking it.

Now of course it is welcome news that the Alston reservoir has been lifted and cleared and the independent monitoring and verification has been undertaken by UKHSA and the Drinking Water Inspectorate, but it is still wholly unacceptable that Hillhead reservoir and residents of that area, the 8,000 of them are still dependent on bottled water and cannot trust their water systems.

This is a totally unacceptable position for us to be in the 21st century.

Steve Barclay, the environment secretary, told MPs that there have been at least 46 confirmed cases of cryptosporidium because of the water contamination, but that that number may rise. Two people have been hospitalised, he said.

He said that daily testing of the Alston reservoir will continue for the foreseeable future, despite tests coming back clear.