In 1990, a group of patients infected with HIV initiated a legal battle against the British government. This was followed by another group of people infected with hepatitis in 2000. Despite other countries taking steps to address similar scandals, the British government resisted calls for a full inquiry for many years.
Over time, various no-fault payment schemes were established to provide compensation to those affected, but they were criticized for being inconsistent and insufficient compared to a scheme implemented in Ireland in 1995. Campaigning MPs are hopeful that the government now recognizes its past mistakes and is urging for more accountability.
In 2017, a legal challenge from 500 people prompted then-Prime Minister Theresa May to launch a current probe into the scandal. A report in 2020 suggested compensation amounts that ranged from £50,000 to £315,000, but emphasized that these figures were only hypothetical. In a positive development in 2022, the government agreed to provide victims with interim compensation of £100,000.
Despite the framework for compensation being established over a year ago, victims are still awaiting their compensation payments. MP Diana Johnson expresses frustration at the delays in the process and believes that the government should have acted more quickly to provide relief to those affected by the scandal.
