‘Too little, too late’: Family reject ambulance service’s apology following review into failures and coverups
Ambulance bosses have apologised after staff were accused of covering up errors when patients died – but grieving families say this is “too little, too late”.
A review into allegations of failures at North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) found problems with how the trust responded to incidents, and highlighted “significant culture and behavioural issues”.
One of the cases highlighted concerned Quinn Evie Milburn-Beadle, a 17-year-old who was found hanging not far from her home in County Durham in 2018.
Quinn Evie Milburn-Beadle
A NEAS paramedic declared her dead rather than trying to perform CPR. They have since been struck off, and the review found they had ignored national and local guidelines by not attempting advanced life support techniques.
“However small the probability of recovery was, [she] deserved that chance and so did her family,” the review led by retired hospital boss Dame Marianne Griffiths said.
It also noted that the trusts “coronial processes were not followed” as vital evidence for the coroner was withheld by NEAS.
Speaking to Sky News, Quinn’s parents David and Tracey Beadle described the report as a “whitewash” and “disappointing” – and called for a public inquiry.
Ms Beadle said: “It’s too little, too late. They’ve never apologised face to face to us, if they had held their hands up and admitted their failure and lying sooner then maybe I could accept the apology, but it’s gone too far for us now.
“We know there was a very very small chance that Quinn could have been saved that night, but to know not everything was done to help her, it keeps you awake at night.
“If that paramedic had kept her alive long enough to get her to hospital we could have all held her hand and said goodbye.
“I had to tell my son his little sister died on the phone, it was horrific. All of that could have been changed if he’d just done what he should have done.”
David and Tracey Beadle
Another case involved the death of a 62-year-old man who urgently needed oxygen, with one crew hampered by a power cut that locked the gates at the ambulance station, and another unable initially to find his key safe to get into his home.
The chief executive of North East Ambulance Service, Helen Ray, told Sky News: “As a service, we let those families down at a point in time that they needed us and I’m deeply sorry for the distress that has caused them.
“An apology isn’t enough but this is an organisation that accepts that they’ve done something wrong, they’ve learned from it and they’re doing their very best to make sure that cannot reoccur.”
When asked about rebuilding trust with the people of the North East, Ms Ray said she’s confident the service is moving in the right direction.
“I understand the public will have concerns when they read this report, but we have learned from these situations from the four families and we have taken action. There may have been issues where people did not follow our systems and processes, when those are brought to our attention we act on those appropriately.”
Helen Ray
The review, which was commissioned by then health secretary Sajid Javid in 2022, also looked into how the ambulance service dealt with whistleblowing following staff members raising concerns about practice within the trust.
Paul Calvert, one of the NEAS whistleblowers, says this report isn’t the full truth – and he alleges there are “dozens and dozens” more cases that are being covered up.
He told Sky News: “It doesn’t explain why information was held from the coroner in these four cases, because fundamentally it’s about dishonesty and the families deserve the truth. That’s what a proper judicial led public inquiry will give and deliver. This report delivers nothing but regurgitation of the facts that were already known.”
He added: “The trust has been a huge failure. It was obvious it was a failure when I joined in 2018. It’s a dysfunctional entity with extremely poor governance with a toxic bullying culture that fosters cover ups.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK.
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The first vote on the assisted dying bill is not only hugely consequential, it’s also hugely unpredictable and even as the vote draws near it still feels like it could go either way.
MPs will debate the bill, brought forward by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, in parliament today before they get a free vote on the legislation.
There are a few reasons why the potential outcome of the vote is difficult to predict. Firstly, the last Commons vote on this issue was back in 2015. It was also a Private Members’ Bill and a free vote, that was defeated by 331 to 119 – 199 MPs didn’t vote and one abstained.
That may seem like a useful starting point to predict future results but there has been an unprecedented turnover of MPs since then.
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It was less than a decade ago but over two-thirds of those MPs from 2015 are no longer in parliament. This means there’s no voting record that can help us out this time round.
Secondly, it’s a free vote so we can’t, as we usually would, look to the political parties to work out the numbers.
Every single one of the 650 MPs must make up their minds for themselves and they have all taken a slightly different approach to the process.
How MPs have told Sky News they will vote on assisted dying
Some came out straight away and declared their position publicly. Some took their time and have only decided in the last few days, putting out statements on social media platforms.
There are also those who prefer to keep it to themselves, and some who are genuinely still undecided and will be until they walk through the voting lobbies.
So, to get a sense of what could happen, at Sky News we have been monitoring declarations as well as reaching out to every MP personally.
This has given us, on the eve of the second reading, an informative but still incomplete picture.
So far we have confirmed that 181 MPs will vote for the bill, while 148 say they will vote against, and 300 are either undecided or haven’t revealed their decision.
There are also 20 MPs that won’t vote – the SNP because the changes won’t apply in Scotland, Sinn Fein who don’t sit in Westminster, and the Speaker and Deputy Speakers.
Of those who will vote but whose position is still unknown, about two-thirds are Labour MPs – a big chunk of those are brand new.
This is the deciding cohort, who just a few months into their roles will make a life-or-death decision that will influence generations to come – no pressure.
Ms Leadbeater has said she hopes parliament will “show itself at its best” by voting in favour of the bill.
In a statement on Thursday night, she said: “I hope this parliament will also be remembered for this major social reform that gives people autonomy over the end of their lives and puts right an injustice that has been left on the statute books for far too long.
“People will be looking in on parliament as it debates this important change to the law – a change that, when we most need it, could bring comfort to any one of us or to somebody we love.”
Read more on assisted dying:
Analysis: Bill could be wrecked by dirty tricks
Five stories that bring the assisted dying debate home
David Cameron comes out in support of bill
How MPs are making up their minds
What does the bill propose?
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Lord Cameron to support assisted dying bill
What could make the difference?
Most MPs tell us they have been poring over the legislation line-by-line and listening intently to their constituents.
But beyond that, there are external factors that will no doubt have influenced their thinking.
Public opinion will be high on the list, with the latest YouGov poll – one of many – showing an overwhelming majority (73%) of the public are in favour of a change in the law.
The other will be how Cabinet ministers vote, with many high profile and respected names, Ed Miliband and Hilary Benn among them, coming out in favour.
MPs will vote in the House of Commons on the bill
More controversial though are those who oppose the bill.
In particular, the Health Secretary Wes Streeting and the Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood have made the news with their views.
They will both have to take a leading role in implementing the legislation if it passes.
Mr Streeting shocked Westminster when he revealed he had changed his mind after voting for the 2015 version.
He also ruffled feathers among colleagues when he appeared to breach the etiquette around free votes, by repeatedly raising concerns around extra pressures on the NHS and making the case for improving palliative care instead.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting changed his mind on the issue. Pic: PA
Mr Streeting’s position and approach have made the bill’s supporters nervous that new MPs will fall in behind him.
In contrast, other big beasts – the prime minister, the chancellor and the foreign secretary – remain silent on which way they will go, aware that their opinions could sway the result.
As it stands, after all the number crunching, it looks likely that this landmark legislation will pass the second reading.
But with so many unknowns, both sides will feel that even at this late stage, it’s still impossible to call.
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