Infected blood scandal: ‘not inconceivable’ that officials or politicians could face prosecution, minister says – UK politics live

Mel Stride, work and pensions secretary, says possibility of prosecution will need to be ‘carefully looked at’ as Commons statement due on compensation

Good morning. Today there will be further reaction to the vast and damning report from Sir Brian Langstaff’s infected blood inquiry. Rishi Sunak told MPs yesterday that the government would pay “comprehensive compensation to those infected and those affected by this scandal” and John Glen, the Cabinet Office minister, will make a statement to the Commons on this after 12.30pm. But there is also increasing interest in whether any of those responsible may face prosecution.

Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, was doing a media round this morning and he described prosecutions as “not inconceivable”. Asked if officials or politicians could be taken to court over what happened, Stride replied:

I think all of those things should and will be looked at ... I have no doubt that all of those things will be extremely carefully looked at, because in that 2,700-page report, there are many questions and many short failings that have surfaced, and they all need to be looked at very carefully. And it is not inconceivable that what you’ve described may be something that transpires.