Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. Thank you for the opportunity to have this debate today, following the publication of the infected blood inquiry's final report last month. I want to be clear: this was the worst treatment scandal in the history of the NHS. While it predated devolution, as the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care in Wales, I want to apologise to all those who were infected and have been affected by this terrible tragedy. I want to pay tribute to the infected and affected, some of whom I met earlier today and are in the gallery this afternoon to listen to this debate. There's been so much suffering by so many people. They fought for decades for the truth to be told, and they must be commended for this. 

I've just met some of those victims and heard their stories: Tony and Pat Summers, fighting for justice for decades for their son, Paul; Rose, who lost her brother in 1990, aged 44; Suzanne, setting out how her mother was a tiny bit anaemic and received tainted blood from a service that was supposed to heal her but ended up killing her and depriving her of the opportunity of meeting her nine great-grandchildren; the harrowing story I heard from Margaret Sugar about how her son Lee suffered and how her son Craig is still paying a price; Joanne, who explained how her brother-in-law was ostracised in school because he had HIV and the school failed to keep it private; Kirk, who is still suffering and is determined to ensure justice is done; Sharon and Ceri, whose father died and nobody told them he had a hepatoma; Ruth, whose husband died in 1989, and wasn’t told he had hep C. They’ve all fought for decades for the truth to be told.

The culmination of the infected blood inquiry on 20 May and Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations provided them with many of the answers to so many of the questions they’ve been asking for so long. The sense of vindication and relief is palpable. But so too is the anger that this was ever allowed to happen. I want to thank the members of the cross-party group who have also supported the victims and campaigned for a UK inquiry to take place. I want to pay a special tribute to Julie Morgan, who has worked tirelessly for many, many decades with Haemophilia Wales, helping people like Tony Lane. I also want to pay tribute to the chair, Lynne Kelly. Together, they’ve fought for the inquiry, they’ve lobbied for ex-gratia payments, for parity and a compensation package.

Dirprwy Lywydd, following the conclusion of the infected blood inquiry and the publication of the final report, we’ve already started work to consider its recommendations. We’ve set up an infected blood inquiry next steps for Wales group, chaired by our new deputy chief medical officer, Dr Push Mangat, and it will meet for the very first time soon. It will work with health boards, the Welsh Blood Service, Public Health Wales and policy officials to ensure we look at the wrongs of the past and work together to ensure this can never happen again. There are some issues we can and we will progress quickly; others will take more time. I’ll report back to Members as this work progresses.

I met John Glen, the responsible Cabinet Office Minister, just after the general election was announced, and said the Welsh Government will continue to work on a four-nations basis to implement improvements across the UK. In response, he told me that the election would not hold the work up. Members will recall that this Senedd gave its consent to the provisions in the UK Victims and Prisoners Bill to establish the new compensation arrangements for people infected and affected. The Victims and Prisoners Bill was approved by the UK Parliament as part of the wash-up process, and has now received Royal Assent. This means the new infected blood compensation authority will be formally set up and payments will be made.

Compensation is a matter for and will be funded by the UK Government, but my officials will continue to work with their counterparts in Whitehall to ensure there is a smooth transition for beneficiaries to the new arrangements. Those people who were infected and affected will rightly be able to claim compensation and we will assist them in this process. We’ll also do all we can to ensure that all those eligible for further interim compensation payments receive it as quickly as possible. A second interim payment to those living beneficiaries who are registered on a support scheme will be made within 90 days. Further interim payments will be made to the estates of those registered who were infected and the Wales infected blood support scheme will continue to make ex-gratia payments to provide welfare and psychological support until the transition is complete.

Sir Robert Francis, who wrote the compensation report for the Cabinet Office, will be holding a series of engagement events over the summer about the compensation package put forward by the UK Government. This will help ensure those able to make claims have the correct information and, where necessary, have their views heard on the proposals.

I’m now going to turn to speak in Welsh, so you may need your headphones.