Operation Jasmine: Review due

When I met the families affected by the collapse of Operation Jasmine in March, two things were clear. They wanted answers and they wanted justice.

Without the bold decision by the First Minister today, these families would have been let down by the system.

Their pain and guilt over what happened to their loved ones deserved a response, and I cannot welcome this response enough.

From the first time I saw the disturbing images of wickedness at these care homes, I knew it was a story that needed to be told and for real lessons to be learned from it.

In the months since, I have been campaigning hard in Parliament to change care home laws, while working with the Deputy Minister for Social Services and Older People’s Commissioner to secure an inquiry - always with their story at the forefront of my mind.

But it is the tireless work by these families that has made this possible today. We will no longer have to talk about 12,000 tonnes of evidence lying locked in a warehouse, or a criminal case lying on file.

Instead we will have a review that will tell the public the full story, and hopefully spare generations to come from tragic stories such as this.

We are pleased that Dr. Margaret Flynn will be leading the review and we are confident that this will be a thorough investigation and that our voices will be heard.

We look forward to working with Dr. Flynn to ensure that the truth about the experiences of our loved ones in care homes is revealed, and that future care standards, regulation and legislation are improved so that the neglect and abuse we believe has taken place, and the pain and suffering this caused, will never occur again.

I strongly welcome the independent review announced today as the most appropriate way to ensure that the families get the information and the answers they have told me they need. I know that the families also strongly welcome the First Minister’s announcement.

I would like to pay public tribute to the dignity with which the families, as the ‘Justice for Jasmine Group’, have made their voices heard and in doing so have given a voice back to their loved ones, despite the grief and pain that for many of them is still so raw.