UK infected blood scandal made worse by ‘chilling’ cover-up, inquiry finds

Thousands of deaths could have been avoided, final report on infection of thousands with HIV or hepatitis C concludes

The scandal that claimed the lives of 3,000 people treated with contaminated blood was inflamed by a chilling" NHS and government cover-up, a scathing report has found on what Rishi Sunak has declared a day of shame".

In the long-awaited conclusion to a five-year public inquiry, Brian Langstaff, who chaired the investigation, said on Monday the calamity could largely, though not entirely, have been avoided" - but successive governments and others in authority did not put patient safety first".