Swinney’s response to QEUH families ‘shameful’, says Scottish Labour leader

John Swinney’s response to the families of those affected by the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) scandal is “shameful”, the Scottish Labour leader has said.

The First Minister issued a statement after families affected by issues at the QEUH said they had never received an apology from the First Minister despite him claiming during a BBC interview that he had apologised during a call on Thursday with them.

In the statement, Mr Swinney said: “I expressed my sincere sorrow and regret during the long, and at times emotional, call with families.”

He added: “I have obviously not communicated that effectively so I want to be crystal clear today: I am deeply sorry for the issues they have experienced at the QEUH and all that families have gone through.”

The Glasgow hospital, one of the largest in the UK, is subject to a national inquiry amid deaths and infections linked to its water and ventilation systems.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the response was “shameful” to those who had been “through hell and back”.

He said: “I think yet again this is a shameful response from the First Minister.

“These are people who have been through hell and back and actually several times when the families were in the Parliament he turned his back on those families, and many people heard the strength of feeling of those families. In response to that, he then rightly agrees to meet the families, but doesn’t give a full and unequivocal apology.

“And let’s not forget, these are families who have lost loved ones, in many cases. In many other cases, their children or loved one have been harmed.”

Mr Sarwar continued: “At the same time, the government was saying that ‘there’s nothing to see here, everything is safe, it’s all made up, the staff aren’t telling the truth, the family are being misinformed’. And there was layer after layer of deceit that came from the health board and from the government.

“It’s right that John Swinney has now given that fulsome apology, but he should do it to these families’ face and he should start telling the truth. Rather than year after year of trauma, deceit, lies and cover-up that sadly has become the hallmark of not just his leadership, but 20 years of SNP.”

Speaking to the Press Association on Monday, the First Minister said: “I made it clear to the families that I met on Thursday in a long discussion that took place, a very emotional discussion that took place, that I was very sorry that we had not achieved all that they wanted us to achieve and to remedy.

“Now quite clearly by the comments of the families over the weekend, what I said wasn’t said effectively enough.

“So let me be crystal clear today that I’m sorry to everyone who’s been affected by the situation at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

“My commitment I gave to the families on Thursday is to willingly work with them to try to address that situation and to improve the way in which they feel and how they’ve been dealt with.”

First Minister John Swinney said last week that a red alert has now been issued for one of the wards at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.

He said the Scottish Government was first told of an amber alert on the ward, which cares for bone marrow transplant patients, on Thursday February 26.

The SNP leader said the infection risk rating was upgraded due to “heightened public anxiety” and not because of any increased risk of harm to patients.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The First Minister expressed his sincere sorrow and regret when he met families on Thursday and in his opening remarks he apologised that families do not yet feel they have the solutions they are looking for.

“The First Minister has been clear the meeting was the start of a wider discussion to help families get the answers they deserve – beyond the work of the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry – and he reiterated yesterday that he is deeply sorry to families for all they have experienced with the QEUH.”