Richard Tice demands apology from Matt Hancock over Covid vaccines: ‘Horrendous at every level’
Reform Party leader Richard Tice has called for former Health Secretary Matt Hancock to apologise over his handling of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout.
Speaking on GB News, Tice demanded “changes to the vaccine compensation scheme” and criticised the implementation of the vaccination programme.
“I would like an apology from Mr Hancock. What he did during that [vaccine rollout] was utterly horrendous at every level,” Tice told the programme.
He urged for “more honesty” about vaccine safety, stating that while the jabs were safe for many, they had “caused harm” to “probably a larger amount of people than many would like to admit.”
Richard Tice blasted Matt Hancock’s handling of the vaccine rollout
PA / GB NEWS
Tice specifically criticised how the vaccination approach evolved during the rollout.
“If you were more honest with people and said, ‘this is an urgent vaccine and we think it’s appropriate for the elderly’, but then the narrative changed,” he told GB News.
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“All of a sudden, they wanted everybody vaccinated. We stood against that and said it’s not appropriate, particularly for children,” he added.
When asked by host Stephen Dixon if his main concern was the mandatory nature of the programme, Tice responded: “That’s the point.”
“Some very bad stuff took place and we have to be honest with people,” he concluded.
His comments come as the Covid-19 inquiry heard testimony about serious problems with vaccine injury compensation.
Richard Tice spoke to Stephen Dixon and Ellie Costello on GB News
GB NEWS
Kate Scott from Vaccine Injured and Bereaved UK told the inquiry that the current scheme is “inadequate and inefficient.”
“It offers too little, too late, to too few,” she said, describing how her husband Jamie was left partially blind and cognitively impaired after a rare vaccine reaction.
The £120,000 one-off payment available through the vaccine damage payment scheme is insufficient for many victims, Scott testified.
Some affected families have been forced to use food banks and relocate homes, adding “extra trauma to what we’re already struggling through,” she said.
According to figures revealed at the inquiry, 17,519 claims have been made to the vaccine damage payment scheme as of November 30, 2024.
Only 194 claimants have been notified they are entitled to payment.
More than 1,000 people have waited over 12 months for a decision on their claims.
A further 126 people have been waiting for nearly three years without receiving a decision.
The NHS Business Services Authority said delays were often due to waiting for medical records from healthcare providers, acknowledging this “can be frustrating” for claimants.