Man whose mum died of Covid in care home confident over inquiry

Agrieving son whose mother died from coronavirus in a Fife care home has been buoyed by the prospect of a public inquiry.

Alan Wightman, whose 88-year-old mum Helen passed away after contracting coronavirus in Scoonie House in Leven in May, is the Scottish spokesman for the group Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK.

They have campaigned for an independent inquiry into care home deaths, both in the wider UK and Scotland.

Mr Wightman chaired a meeting with Nicola Sturgeon on March 22 and welcomed her agreement to holding an inquiry north of the border this year.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman has since admitted potentially infected patients were incorrectly moved out of hospitals into care homes at the start of the pandemic.

She said the Scottish Government failed to stop the spread of the infection and failed to understand the social care sector as a whole, adding that the Scottish Government “didn’t take the right precautions” and that it was “a mistake”.

Mr Wightman, from Forfar, said the Covid group has written to Boris Johnson and the UK Government six times seeking a meeting but had been refused or ignored.

He said: “I was very encouraged by that meeting. The first minister has said there will be an inquiry and Jeane Freeman is now coming out and admitting her mistakes.

“Nicola Sturgeon, thus far, is the only leader of any of the four nations to say she will have a public inquiry and it will be this year. The questions about what Jeane Freeman – what did she know, what didn’t she know – will all be addressed through the public inquiry. We will be involved in setting the terms of reference for the inquiry in Scotland.”

A public inquiry begins when its terms of reference are set out. These are specific instructions outlining the questions that the inquiry should address, the types of information and feedback that the government wants, and often a sense of when the inquiry should issue its report.

Mr Wightman continued: “That will make sure that our views are collected, and organised and put forward in setting those terms of reference. I can’t really say at this stage what we think they might be but I think we have a good idea within the group.

“I’m perfectly happy at the moment with what has been promised to our group, and I believe the first minister will deliver. I’m not interested in bashing her or her party to score political points for somebody else.

“We want what we were promised; a statutory public inquiry, led by a judge, with a human rights basis, looking at how the pandemic was handled in Scotland.”

Discussing inquiry, Mr a Uk-wide Wightman said: “Boris Johnson has been approached by our group six times and asked if he will sit down and speak to us and six times he has either ignored us or point-blank refused and said ‘no’.

“So the chances of a fournation inquiry are minimal in my mind, but never underestimate the power of the first minister, she might just be able to persuade him.

“We are keen that we get some kind of inquiry on the aspects that are devolved, and it gives a lead to the rest of the UK, and says, ‘if Scotland can do it, why can’t you?’.”

MEMORY: Alan Wightman does not want his mother Helen, who died at the age of 88, to become just another statistic of care home deaths from Covid.