Infected Blood scandal: What compensation will be available for Scottish victims?

Details of compensation for Infected Blood scandal victims follows the report finally being published on Monday.

Victims of the Infected Blood scandal are set for pay-outs before the end of the year, the UK government has announced, as First Minister John Swinney issued a public apology to those who suffered north of the Border.

Ministers have reportedly set out £10 billion for the compensation scheme, with interim payments of £210,000 going to the most urgent cases while the final scheme becomes operational.

The compensation announcement was following by an apology to victims from Mr Swinney, who said they were “failed by the organisations and process that should have been in place to protect and support them”.

Infected blood victims and campaigners protest on College Green in Westminster.

In a scheme that will apply to those across the UK, including Scotland, Cabinet Office minister John Glen said the expectation was the final payments would start before the end of the year, but recognised “time is of the essence” for some victims.

The move involves the establishment of the Infected Blood Compensation Authority, which will administer the compensation scheme, chaired by Sir Robert Francis. Compensation will be awarded in line with five categories – an injury impact award, a social impact award, an autonomy award, a care award and a financial loss award.

The "care award will be directly awarded to the person with the infection, or their estate", and the "financial loss award" will go either directly to the infected person, or their estate if they have died. Living infected or those affected will be offered lump sumps, or periodical payments.

More than 30,000 people were infected with deadly viruses between the 1970s and early 1990s as they received blood transfusions or blood products while receiving NHS care.

Following the inquiry report being published on Monday, Mr Glen the Commons: “The Prime Minister spoke about the anguish that the Infected Blood scandal brought to those impacted by it. I want to reiterate his words and apologise again today. I am sorry.

“Those who have been infected or affected as a result of this scandal will receive compensation. To be crystal clear, if you have been directly or indirectly infected by NHS blood, blood products or tissue contaminated with HIV or hepatitis C, or have developed a chronic infection from blood contaminated with hepatitis B, you will be eligible to claim compensation under the scheme.

“And where an infected person has died, but would have been eligible under these criteria, compensation will be paid to their estate. And this will include where a person was infected with hepatitis B and died during the acute period of infection.”

So far about £400m has been paid out through interim compensation payments of £100,000 to infected people or bereaved partners, but there was nothing for parents who lost children and children who lost parents. This is now set to change, Mr Glen explained.

He said: “When a person with an eligible infection has been accepted onto the scheme, their affected loved ones will be able to apply for compensation in their own right. That means partners, parents, siblings, children, friends and family who have acted as carers of those who are infected are all eligible to claim.

“Now, I’m aware that being asked to provide evidence of eligibility will likely be distressing. So I’m determined to minimise that as much as possible and I’m pleased to confirm today that anyone already registered with one of the existing infected blood support schemes will automatically be considered eligible for compensation.

“Payments of £210,000 will be made to living infected beneficiaries, those registered with existing infected blood support schemes, as well as those who register with the support scheme before the final scheme becomes operational, and the estates of those who pass away between now and payments being made.

“I know that time is of the essence, which is why I’m also pleased to say that they will be delivered within 90 days, starting in the summer, so that they can reach those who need it so urgently most.”

Mr Glen also clarified there would be no immediate changes to the existing support schemes. He said: “Payments will continue to be made at the same level until March 31, 2025 and they will not be deducted from any of these compensation awards.

“From April 1, 2025, any support scheme payments received will be counted towards a beneficiary’s final compensation award – this will ensure parity between support scheme beneficiaries regardless of whether they were the first or the last to have their compensation assessed by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority.

“We will ensure that no-one receives less in compensation than they would have received in support payments. However, this is not the end. Over the next few weeks, Sir Robert Francis will seek views from the Infected Blood community on the proposed scheme before its terms are set in regulations, to make sure that the scheme will best serve those that it’s intended for.”

Liberal Democrat Scottish affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine said: "Our thoughts today are with the victims and their families that have been devastated by this scandal. The government must now deliver compensation in a timely manner and ensure the process is fully transparent and waste no more time."

Elsewhere, the First Minister said in a statement delivered to Holyrood: “Those infected and impacted by this tragedy have worked tirelessly to ensure that its impact, and their suffering, is not ignored – and to ensure that what they have endured is never repeated.

“People who were infected with HIV or hepatitis as a result of NHS treatment have endured unimaginable suffering, and I know that the Infected Blood Inquiry report published yesterday will not heal wounds, nor bring back those love ones who have been lost. I do, however, hope that it is a step forward in the journey towards a semblance of justice and a better future.

“The Scottish Government has already accepted the moral case for compensation for infected blood victims and we are committed to working with the UK government to ensure any compensation scheme builds on the interim compensation which was paid out in 2022 and works as well as possible for victims.

“The Scottish Government will take forward the inquiry’s recommendations for Scotland, along with charities representing the infected and affected.

“We are determined to use the Inquiry’s report to ensure lessons have been learned so a tragedy like this can never happen again. The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service has extremely high standards of blood safety and I would continue to encourage anyone who can do so to give blood, as this remains essential for thousands of patients.”