‘Bloody cover up’: what the papers say as Sunak apologises for infected blood scandal

Rishi Sunak’s words were echoed across almost all the major newspaper front pages on Tuesday, as the prime minister apologised for the failures of successive governments over the infected blood scandal, declaring it a “day of shame for the British state”.

A report released at the end of a five-year public inquiry found that the scandal that claimed the lives of 3,000 people treated with contaminated blood was made worse by a “chilling” NHS and government cover-up.

Related: What is the UK’s infected blood scandal?

The Guardian characterises it as the “biggest ever NHS treatment disaster”, and features an image of campaigners gathered outside parliament on the day that the report was released.

The Mirror carries images of just a few of those who lost their lives to the scandal, its headline reading “Make guilty face justice”.

The Telegraph, like many others, features Sunak’s words on its front page with “‘A day of shame for the British state’”, going on to quote the prime minister as saying the scandal had resulted from a “moral failure at the heart of our national life”.

Under its headline, the i says that victims are demanding change, while quoting a grieving daughter who says that Sunak’s apology is not “worth the paper it’s written on”.

The story also leads across a number of local papers; The Northern Echo carries testimony from a man whose father died after being infected with HIV. Dave Farry is calling for a criminal investigation.

The Yorkshire Post quotes the MP for Kingston upon Hull North – Dame Diana Johnson – who has been a longtime campaigner on the issue, who said it was a “vindication of the nearly 50 years of campaigning for justice”.

The Metro describes it as a “‘chilling’ verdict on NHS catastrophe”, under the headline “40 years of bloody cover up”.

The Mail carries the story across its entire front page, with the headline “Day that shames the British state”.

The Times says corporate manslaughter charges are being called for, describing it as “Britain’s day of shame over tainted NHS blood”.