Salisbury victim of Infected Blood Scandal speaks out

It comes after a report into the scandal was published, with compensation packages announced for those living with an illness. 

Daryn Craik, 57 and from Salisbury, is one of those people, and says his life "should have been so different" after living with an illness for almost 40 years. 

Mr Craik was injured in a motorcycle crash near Ringwood in 1984, and had to be given six pints of blood, which later turned out to be infected. 

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He didn't find out until 1994 - ten years later - that he had contracted hepatitis C from the blood he was given after the crash. 

The 2,527-page report from the inquiry into the scandal, published on May 20, found it "could largely have been avoided" and there was a "pervasive" cover-up to hide the truth.

More than 30,000 people were infected with deadly viruses between the 1970s and early 1990s as they received blood transfusions or blood products while receiving NHS care.

Some 3,000 people have since died.

Mr Craik, who was born in Salisbury and has lived here most of his life, has never spoken before about his illness.

After 40 years, following the publication of the inquiry, he has shared his story exclusively with the Journal.

He said: "The cover-up is absolutely disgusting. 

"I was a 17-year-old with my life head of me, and through no fault of my own, my life took a dramatic change.

"I always wanted a family and couldn't have children, and I never married [because] the scandal took those things away from me. I spent 40 years embarrassed by my condition when I shouldn't have been."

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Mr Craik, who is a landscaper, told the Journal he refused treatment for almost 40 years as he didn't want to be a guinea pig in trails, and it wasn't until 2022 that he finally accepted treatment. 

He has now been cured, but says there have been many knock-on effects on his body. 

"I was one of the lucky ones", he said. "So many people died because of this."

"But my life could and would have been so different if it wasn't for this". 

He told the Journal how he lived with "the stigma" of his illness and how he always tried to hide it when he was going to the hospital or the GP for appointments. 

John Glen (Image: Press Association)

John Glen, who was still the MP for Salisbury when the report was published, said the scandal was "an appalling tragedy that should never have happened".

Mr Glen worked closely on developing the government's response to the Infected Blood Inquiry and the compensation that victims should receive.

Mr Craik said the inquiry has answered a lot of questions and will make a difference, but said that for some people it is "too little too late".