Blood Transfusions during the Falklands War

Louise Sandher-Jones Excerpts

Tuesday 11th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Veterans and People (Louise Sandher-Jones)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool Walton (Dan Carden) for securing this important debate and for raising the case of his constituent. It is rather apt that we are holding this debate on Armistice Day and so soon after Remembrance Sunday, when people the length and breadth of the UK came together to commemorate the fallen. As a veteran myself, I would like to start my remarks by thanking my hon. Friend’s constituent for his years of service to our country, in particular his contribution to the Falklands war and to restoring sovereignty to the people of the Falklands, which came at a huge personal cost. His courage, and the courage and sacrifice demonstrated by all those who served in the Falklands war, shall never be forgotten.

I need to be clear at the outset that I am limited in the extent to which I can go into the particular case of my hon. Friend’s constituent. While the information I have can never undo the harms caused by infected blood, I hope it will provide some measure of reassurance to his constituent that there is a clear route to compensation for members of our armed forces who received infected blood. The infected blood inquiry’s report, which laid bare the details of the national infected blood scandal, explicitly set out that the infected blood compensation scheme includes provision for individuals who received infected blood during armed forces treatment overseas, which includes veterans of the Falklands war.

As I say, no amount of money can undo the damage caused to people’s lives. However, this Government are determined that the infected blood compensation scheme will be there to bring redress to those who have been impacted. It is important to note that the compensation scheme does not have hard cut-off dates for determining whether a person is eligible based on when their infection was acquired and that all evidence will be assessed independently, on the balance of probabilities. While the scheme does acknowledge that screening for hepatitis B was introduced in December 1972, before the start of the Falklands war, it does not preclude claims that demonstrate they fell outside of the screening programme.

In terms of process, the infected blood compensation scheme is delivered by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority, which is the body responsible for handling claims and making payments. The assessments that it makes are based on the scheme’s regulations, and it operates independently of the Ministry of Defence and other Government Departments. The authority began making payments to infected people in 2024. Last month, it launched its registration service for those who wish to make a claim. I encourage my hon. Friend’s constituent and any other Falklands veterans who believe they may have been infected through blood transfusion to register with this service.

It is important that I address the issue of veterans’ medical records and acknowledge that historical records from the early 1980s are not up to modern standards and are often incomplete. That should not discourage affected veterans from applying for the infected blood compensation scheme because, I repeat, the Infected Blood Compensation Authority will consider all available evidence.

[Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)]

As an officer of the all-party parliamentary group on haemophilia and contaminated blood, I would like to confirm, in support of what the Minister is saying and the advice she is giving, that the contact I have had with IBCA has been very positive. It seems to want to engage on a personal basis with people who have suffered in this way. The hon. Member for Liverpool Walton (Dan Carden) really should advise his constituent to take up this offer to engage with the authority; I think he will be pleasantly surprised at the positive response he will get.

[Louise Sandher-Jones]

I thank the right hon. Member for his intervention.

In relation specifically to blood transfusions aboard SS Uganda during the Falklands war, the MOD has made extensive inquiries and concluded that it does not hold information in relation to these. I reiterate that I am speaking about MOD files rather than other forms of evidence that exist, as my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool Walton said. It has also concluded that any detailed information on the source of blood used is unlikely to have been recorded in medical records during this period.

[Dan Carden]

I am grateful to the Minister and to the right hon. Member for New Forest East (Sir Julian Lewis) for their guidance. My constituent is frustrated; he has done extensive research, spoken to many people and been able to amass evidence, and I think what he would really appreciate is the Minister committing departmental time and energy to look at some of the evidence that he has acquired.

--- Later in debate ---

[Louise Sandher-Jones]

I will come to that point in a moment.

To reiterate, the MOD veterans welfare service supports veterans and their dependants with increasing needs around disability, housing and subsistence, and the war pension scheme is available for service-related injuries and conditions.

When I served, I wanted to know that I would receive the best possible medical treatment for service-related conditions, and I expect the same for those who serve today. I can reassure the House that the UK Defence Medical Services is now a global leader in operational blood management, providing world-class assurance and governance of blood products, including in deployed settings. The centre of defence pathology monitors and evaluates the blood management system to ensure the safety of blood products in deployed settings, including recording full details of the transit, storage and use of every unit of blood. This level of tracking and governance was not in place during the Falklands war, but it is now standard practice.

To conclude, I will summarise the key points. Veterans of the Falklands war are eligible to claim compensation from the infected blood compensation scheme, and there are no hard cut-off dates that would automatically exclude claims based on when an infection was acquired. Evidence will be independently assessed on the balance of probabilities, and incomplete medical records do not automatically disqualify a claim. I would encourage my hon. Friend’s constituent, and any other veterans in a similar position, to register with the Infected Blood Compensation Authority’s registration service. Of course, I am happy to meet my hon. Friend and his constituent to talk about the work that he has undertaken and to hear his story.

The sacrifices and service of Falklands veterans like my hon. Friend’s constituent will never be forgotten. This Government are committed to supporting all our veterans. They have served our country with courage and dedication, and they deserve our support in return.

Question put and agreed to.