Widow of contaminated blood victim welcomes payments for bereaved partners
![](https://images.ctfassets.net/pjshm78m9jt4/4d5iibWVUghdoDMRzcTM0G/22d66f0dc1ac055776b070cc76465055/Catherine_Neil_Kerr.png?fm=jpg&fit=fill&w=400&h=225&q=80)
The widow of a Belfast man who died after receiving contaminated blood has welcomed the introduction of payments for partners who have been left bereaved by the scandal.
Today, the Health Minister Robin Swann confirmed further details of these financial support packages to benefit widows.
His announcement comes after UTV's Up Close programme exclusively revealed that Mr Swann was planning to introduce such a scheme.
The new annual payments will be available to anyone left bereaved after their spouse or partner contracted Hepatitis C or HIV because of receiving NHS-supplied infected blood or blood products in Northern Ireland.
Catherine Kerr is one of those expected to be eligible for the scheme. Her husband Neil died aged 42 in 2000 after being diagnosed with HIV and Hepatitis C.
Speaking to the media for the first time, Catherine told UTV about the financial hardship she faced after her husband, a father of three, died.
"Because of what he had, we couldn't get life insurance so I had to sell the house to pay off debts.
"Sometimes I didn't have enough for shopping," she told UTV.
"My daughter and I many a time had toast for dinner four or five days a week."
However, Catherine says she still wants answers:
"It's about recognition and instead of trying to hide what happened, tell us the truth, admit what happened and say sorry."
Those eligible for the payments will receive notification from the Department of Health in the coming weeks.
Spouses and partners who were not infected by contaminated blood were previously given a one off payment of £5,000.
However, Mr Swann said it was always his intention to provide further financial support as soon as possible:
“I have met with and corresponded with many affected people and I have listened to their experiences of how contaminated blood has impacted on their lives and the sacrifices they have had to make.
Giving more detail about the payments on offer, Mr Swann said:
"The payments represent a Departmental funding commitment of around £400,000 annually and range from £14,079 to £33,561 per year. These payments will be backdated to April 2020 and will continue into future years, rising annually with inflation."
The scandal continues to be examined at the Infected Blood Inquiry.
You can watch the full Up Close investigation into the contaminated blood scandal here.