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Infected Blood Compensation Scheme 2025-10-30
30 October 2025
Lead MP
Nick Thomas-Symonds
Debate Type
General Debate
Tags
Taxation
Other Contributors: 22
At a Glance
Nick Thomas-Symonds raised concerns about infected blood compensation scheme 2025-10-30 in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Government Response
The Minister updated the House on progress in establishing an infected blood compensation scheme, responding positively to recommendations from the inquiry. He laid regulations before the House and launched a public consultation seeking feedback from stakeholders on proposed changes. IBCA has made significant progress in delivering compensation, with over £1 billion paid out so far. Minister provides detailed responses regarding progress in the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, addressing issues of payment scaling up, transparency mechanisms, tax exemptions for compensation grants, and support for campaigning groups. He reaffirms commitment to speedy payments and acknowledges anomalies such as inheritance tax on compensations. Reiterated his commitment to examining fairness of tax exemptions. Acknowledged strong feeling across the House on this issue. Promised to look into interim payments for deceased estates, reiterated urgency and expedited process for these payments. Emphasised accessibility of consultation process and readiness to provide explainers for technical recommendations. The Minister emphasised the importance of transparency, duty of candour, and maintaining feedback from victims. He confirmed ongoing efforts to increase compensation payment speed and committed to continuing to drive progress.
The Government are responding positively to the recommendations made by the infected blood inquiry and will bring forward legislation as soon as possible. The regulations laid before the House remove several barriers to compensation, expand eligibility, and ensure phased support scheme payments. A public consultation on proposed changes to the compensation scheme has been launched, seeking feedback from stakeholders across seven specific issues. IBCA has made significant progress in delivering compensation, with 2,476 people receiving offers of £1.35 billion in total. Interim payments for estates of infected persons have also seen over 600 estates receive payments totalling £60 million.
The Opposition welcomes the measures announced by the Minister, particularly those dealing with HIV eligibility start dates, deeming of severity bands, evidence of diagnosis date, affected estates, and bereaved partner support scheme payments. However, more clarity is needed on recommendations regarding effective treatment for hepatitis and transparency in scheme design. The consultation period will last until January next year, after which the Government should respond swiftly to implement necessary changes. Questions raised about ensuring the pace of payments continues to accelerate and not be jeopardised by rule changes.
Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General acknowledges the work of Sir Brian Langstaff's inquiry, outlines progress in the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, and commits to scaling up payments. He addresses concerns raised by shadow minister about timely access to documentation and transparency mechanisms.
Clive Efford
Lab
Eltham and Chislehurst
Shadow Minister raises issues regarding the tax exemption for compensation payments and support for campaigning groups involved in the scheme. He asks for assistance from the Department of Health and Social Care to address these concerns.
Tessa Munt
LD
Wells and Mendip Hills
Liberal Democrat spokesperson criticises delays in compensation payments, seeks clarification on timelines, and questions about special category mechanisms affecting 916 victims. She emphasises the importance of timely justice for all eligible victims.
Grahame Morris
Lab
Easington
Labour MP seeks confirmation that hepatitis C sufferers will have access to the consultation process as recommended by Sir Brian Langstaff and inquires about the timeline for the Government's response to the consultation.
Julian Lewis
Con
New Forest East
Conservative MP commends IBCA's communications, points out an anomaly with inheritance tax on compensation payments made shortly before death and asks Minister to speak to Treasury about it.
Meg Hillier
Lab/Co-op
Hackney South and Shoreditch
Thanked the Minister for his statement. Raised concerns about tax exemptions, learning from National Audit Office's work on compensation schemes, and urged support for a national campaign to encourage testing for hepatitis C among those who received blood transfusions.
John Glen
Con
Salisbury
Praised the Minister for his thorough analysis but questioned the pace of policy stability after six years and £140 million spent, calling for a focus on delivery rather than further iterations of recommendations.
Gareth Snell
Lab/Co-op
Stoke-on-Trent Central
Congratulated the Minister and raised concerns about tax exemptions potentially penalising victims. Demanded assurance from the Minister that he will raise this issue with Treasury again to make it fair for those who were failed by the state.
Torbay
Congratulated the Minister on progress made but asked for urgent payments expedited and additional resources put in place for deceased estates. Highlighted a constituent's prolonged struggle with the compensation process.
Glasgow West
Thanked the Minister and raised concerns about repeated form-filling requirements despite previous applications, stressing the need to expedite the process for older claimants worried about inheritance tax implications for their children.
Seamus Logan
SNP
Aberdeenshire North and Moray East
Complimented the Minister's approach and collaboration with devolved Administrations, enquired about statutory footing for voluntary organisations to support claimants, and underlined the importance of straightforward process.
Tom Hayes
Lab
Bournemouth East
Expressed concern over lengthy delays and uncertainties regarding when third set of regulations will become law. Urged accessibility of consultation process for affected communities.
Jim Shannon
DUP
Strangford
Acknowledged the Minister's compassionate approach but queried if new streamlined scheme reduces stress for claimants and sought assurances on smoother processes moving forward.
Cardiff West
Praised the Minister’s commitment to compensation scheme, inquired about Government's assurance that all affected individuals will receive their compensation promptly and when they can start claims.
The Minister emphasised the importance of increasing the speed of progress in the compensation process, noting that over £1.8 billion worth of offers have been made and over 10,000 claims registered. He also mentioned Sir Tyrone Urch's role in scaling up IBCA to deal with a larger number of affected individuals.
Andrew Cooper
Mid Cheshire
Mr. Cooper acknowledged the Minister’s personal commitment and highlighted the importance of transparency, requesting that regular data on claims received, assessed and paid be published to maintain trust with affected families.
Euan Stainbank
Falkirk
Mr. Stainbank welcomed the Minister's statement and asked for assurances that actions set out will reflect feedback from victims, emphasising the need to streamline systems to improve the pace of delivery.
Andrew Lewin
Welwyn Hatfield
Mr. Lewin discussed the case of the Blake family, who have been seeking reassurance about the urgency with which compensation payments are being brought forward, and expressed hope that the Government would commit to resolving such cases as soon as possible.
James Naish
Rushcliffe
Mr. Naish inquired about steps taken by the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure funding allocated to charities is utilized effectively for processing applications quickly, emphasising the role these charities have played in supporting victims.
Mark Sewards
Leeds South West and Morley
Mr. Sewards reported on a constituent's full compensation and expressed concern about prioritising claims of those nearing end-of-life stages to ensure they receive justice before their passing.
Shadow Response
Mike Wood (Kingswinford and South Staffordshire) Conservative Party
Shadow Response
The Opposition welcomed measures announced by the Minister but sought more clarity on recommendations regarding hepatitis treatment and transparency in scheme design. Questions raised about ensuring the pace of payments continues to accelerate post-consultation. Shadow Minister raises concerns about timely access to documentation and transparency mechanisms in the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme, emphasising support for campaigning groups involved in the scheme.
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