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MEDIA STATEMENT Date: 15 July 2022

Commenting on Sir Brian Langstaff’s invitation for Infected Blood Inquiry participants and their advisers to let him know their views by COB Monday 25th July on whether he should make a recommendation to Government about interim payments for victims of the contaminated blood scandal and if so the scope of these payments (see announcement here), Des Collins, senior partner at Collins Solicitors says:

“We very much welcome Sir Brian’s proposal that he might use his powers to make a recommendation to Government before the end of his inquiry and his final report. It has been obvious for some time based on the evidence heard from victims, from Sir Robert Francis and, the delayed timetable of the inquiry meaning its final report is unlikely to be until 2023, that any proper compensation if it ultimately comes may be too late for many. An intervention by Sir Brian now to recommend interim payments as soon as possible would hopefully be one that the Government cannot ignore and is a significant endorsement of the excellent work of Sir Robert Francis. Bravo Sir Brian on behalf of the 1500 clients I represent! At last, the wheels may be turning in the direction of doing the right thing by those impacted at the hands of the state so terribly for so long ago. This cannot come a moment too soon.”

ENDS

Collins Solicitors Media Enquiries:

To interview Des Collins or any of the firm’s clients willing to speak on this issue, please contact:
Bell Yard Communications: BellYard@bell-yard.com
Louise Beeson: louise@bell-yard.com / Mob: 07768 956997
Declan Flahive: declan@bell-yard.com / Mob: 07944 629485

Notes for editors

The Infected Blood Inquiry, chaired by Sir Brian Langstaff, is the UK’s largest ever statutory inquiry, established to investigate how men women and children were given infected blood and blood products by the NHS from the 1970s. Hearings can be attended in person or followed live on the Infected Blood Inquiry website/YouTube channel