Arms Length Body Administration
Infected Blood Inquiry · Second Interim Report · Issued 5 April 2023 · Addressed to: UK Government
Government responseUK Government: Accepted (May 2025)
DeliveryNo statement from UK Government found
Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
I recommend that an Arms Length Body (ALB) should be set up to administer the compensation scheme, with guaranteed independence of judgement, chaired by a judge of High Court or Court of Session status as sole decision maker, transparent in its procedures so far as the law permits and accountable directly to Parliament for the expenditure of public funds and the fulfilment of its terms of reference. Appeals should be to a bespoke independent appeal body with a legal chair which will reconsider the decision of the scheme in any case appealed to it. The scheme should have procedures in accordance with the principles set out in this report and in particular which: a) have regard to the need of applicants for speed of provision, simplicity of process, accessibility, involvement, proactive support, fairness and efficiency; b) involve potentially eligible persons and their representatives amongst those in a small advisory board, and in the review and improvement of the scheme; and c) permit the hearing of applicants in person. d) should have access to the records held by or on behalf of any previous publicly funded support scheme (subject to any necessary consents by the data subjects), and take into account the reasoning of any appeal from the decisions it takes.
Infected Blood Inquiry, Second Interim Report · 5 Apr 2023 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
AI-generated evidence summary
The Inquiry recommended establishing an independent arm's-length body to administer the compensation scheme. In May 2025, the UK Government stated that it had established the Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) to deliver compensation UK-wide, though a judicial chair and bespoke appeal body were not mentioned (Cabinet Office response, May 2025). In September 2026, the Committee of Public Accounts reported that "only the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme is run independently of the department or organisation responsible for the original harm" (Committee of Public Accounts, Sep 2026). In June 2026, Sir Brian Langstaff told a parliamentary committee that the authority was designed without the involvement of affected individuals (Sir Brian Langstaff, Jun 2026).
Sources
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 5 Oct 2026.
Government response
●UK Government · Accepted · 14 May 2025
In line with recommendations 14 and 16 of the Second Interim Report, IBCA has been established to deliver the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme and financial compensation to victims of infected blood on a UK-wide basis. All those registered with an infected blood support scheme before 1st April 2025 - both living infected persons and bereaved partners - can choose to receive regular support scheme payments for life. This goes beyond the recommendations made in the Second Interim report and reflects the recommendations made by Sir Robert Francis following his engagement exercise with the community in June 2024. In his report to the Government in August 2024, Sir Robert was clear that support scheme payments should continue for those who meet the eligibility criteria of the existing support scheme before 1 April 2025. The Government has accepted that recommendation and the regulations reflect this position.
Extract from: Full Government Response to the Infected Blood Inquiry's May 2024 Report
Delivery
No statement on delivery from UK Government has been found in the sources searched. This is separate from the response above.
What other bodies have found
●Committee of Public Accounts · 9 Sep 2026
only the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme is run independently of the department or organisation responsible for the original harm.
From: Government compensation schemes, Twelfth Report of Session 2026-27
●Infected Blood Inquiry · 30 Jun 2026
The effect was that it was designed without the involvement of those it most concerned, and it needed to be designed with their involvement.
From: Oral evidence: Inquiry into the recommendations of the Infected Blood Inquiry (Stage 1)
●National Audit Office · 15 Apr 2026
In response, the government set up the UK-wide IBCA in May 2024. IBCA is sponsored by Cabinet Office.
From: Government's compensation and financial recognition schemes, Gareth Davies, Comptroller and Auditor General
Earlier findings (1)
●Infected Blood Inquiry · 30 Jun 2026
The compensation authority was set up as an independent body precisely because of the concern that it needed to be independent of the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Work and Pensions, which had been administering the schemes beforehand.
From: Oral evidence: Inquiry into the recommendations of the Infected Blood Inquiry (Stage 1)
How this page is built
The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.