Organisational Culture Change
Infected Blood Inquiry · Infected Blood Inquiry Final Report · Issued 20 May 2024 · Addressed to: UK Government
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
Cultural Change:
That a culture of defensiveness, lack of openness, failure to be forthcoming, and being dismissive of concerns about patient safety be addressed both by taking the steps set out in (a) above, and also by making leaders accountable for how the culture operates in their part of the system, and for the way in which it involves patients.
Infected Blood Inquiry, Infected Blood Inquiry Final Report · 20 May 2024 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Scottish Government stated that it had responded to reviews about raising concerns in the workplace and was implementing associated recommendations (Government Response to the Infected Blood Inquiry, Cabinet Office, December 2024).
- No independent assessment of progress in addressing the culture of defensiveness in healthcare leadership has been identified to March 2026.
Response — verbatim from government
●UK Government
Scotland established an Independent National Whistleblowing Office and introduced Non-Executive Whistleblowing Champions in all Health Boards. Wales enacted the 2020 Act. Northern Ireland is implementing a Being Open Framework.
UK Government · 14 May 2025 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 19 Jan 2026 · UK Parliament Public Office (Accountability) Bill 2024-26 ("Hillsborough Law") introduced September 2025, passed Commons January 2026, progressing through Lords. Creates statutory duty of candour for public authorities with criminal sanctions. View source → Reasonable Progress
- 15 Jan 2026 · IBCA Community Update As of 13 January 2026: 3,721 people asked to start claims, 3,546 begun process, 3,074 received offers totalling £2.47bn, 2,861 paid totalling £1.89bn. Third compensation regulations in force 31 December 2025. View source → Good Progress
- 28 Oct 2025 · IBCA Independent Review IBCA has contacted 2,215 people to begin compensation claims; 1,934 started process. £812m+ paid via Horizon Shortfall Scheme. £11.8bn committed in Autumn Budget. View source → Reasonable Progress
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.