Victims of three medical products that caused ‘avoidable harm’ still awaiting redress
The dark granite block in a children’s cemetery in Bristol tells an incomplete story: “Trelissa Whitbread, born 3rd of Feb 1988. She lived 2 hours.”
Deborah Mann has not returned to the grave of her firstborn for 30 years but today has come with her daughter, Branwen, to tell her the story. “It shouldn’t have happened,” she says quietly.
Ms Mann had four pregnancies. Her first two children, Trelissa and Kaverne, died shortly after birth. Ms Mann believes their deaths were caused by an epilepsy drug she was taking called sodium valproate, prescribed by her GP.
After a long gap she would go on to have two more children, both girls, who were diagnosed with what is now recognised as foetal valproate syndrome, which has left them with life-long physical and neurological problems.
Ms Mann tells Sky News: “I asked so many questions and was told ‘this is just the way things are.’ It can’t be the way things are when you lose two babies. How can it be the way things are?”
Deborah Mann
Five years ago, valproate was among three medical products including the pregnancy test drug Primodos and medical device pelvic mesh, that were found to have caused “avoidable harm” to patients.
The report was clear that valproate could cause lifelong disabilities to the children of mothers taking the drug when pregnant.
The independent review, chaired by Baroness Julia Cumberlege, strongly criticised the industry and regulators and made a series of recommendations, including the creation of a redress scheme for victims in all three groups.
On valproate, it stated: “Nothing can undo the harm that has been done to these individuals, but steps can be taken to make their lives easier.”
Deborah Mann and her daughter Branwen visit Trelissa’s grave
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20,000 children exposed to drug while in womb
Five years on there is still no such scheme for any of the campaign groups. In the week of developments in the Post Office scandal and infected blood, here is another scandal no less significant.
An estimated 20,000 children were exposed to sodium valproate while in the womb.
UK regulator the MHRA says an increased risk of neonatal loss is not currently a recognised adverse reaction, but it does warn of a range of congenital problems caused by the drug that are increasingly likely the higher the dose.
Sky News has also seen a study from 1972 which shows high doses of sodium valproate could be embryo-lethal in rats. At times Ms Mann was being prescribed 5,000mg, which is double the highest recommended dose.
Ms Mann worries about the future of her surviving children. She says of the government: “It’s financially better to pretend they don’t even exist. So many children are harmed, so many children that will not have their needs addressed as they grow older.”
At the time of birth her eldest daughter Rhonwen’s medical records state “valproate levels caused foetal and patient damage,” which included deafness.
Branwen, 29
Daughter worries about being a mother as she can pass condition on
Ms Mann wasn’t initially told about the cause of her daughter’s problems, even when she was pregnant with her next child Branwen.
The 29-year-old told Sky News: “I have tight ankles, tight legs, tight hips and I have a weak lower back. I have to wear splints every day to be sure I can keep walking, and I have to do exercises every day. I have autism, Asperger’s syndrome.”
She goes on to list a series of brain problems that must be scanned every two years, “to make sure nothing’s grown or moved.”
She was bullied at school for her appearance, and she worries about being a mother as she can pass the condition on to her children.
She said: “I feel very let down by the government. I feel let down by the people who promised they would help us, that they will help ensure that we have a better quality of life.”
‘Somebody at last had listened’
Others the Cumberlege review wanted to get redress for “avoidable harm” were children born with malformations after their mothers used the drug Primodos.
These hormone-packed pills were prescribed as a pregnancy test to thousands of women in the 1960s and 70s and are alleged to have caused a range of malformations to babies, from shortened limbs to heart defects, which the manufacturer denies.
Marie Lyon, lead campaigner for the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy Tests
Lead campaigner for the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy Tests (ACDHPT), Marie Lyon, told Sky News: “Our families were utterly overjoyed that somebody at last had listened, and Julia Cumberlege did a thorough review. Our expectations were wow! This is it now. An apology from the health secretary, all these years and we’ve finally got there, and then nothing.
“Five years and may I say, five years and 31 deaths. That’s how many of our members have died since that report was published in 2020 and we’ve still not received justice. It’s a disgrace.”
Baroness Cumberlege also recommended the government create a redress scheme for women left debilitated by pelvic mesh implants.
Kath Sansom, founder of the Sling The Mesh campaign group
‘The government are dragging their feet’
Kath Sansom, founder of the Sling The Mesh campaign group, told Sky News: “There are women in there who can’t walk any more, who need a stick or a mobility scooter – they’ve lost jobs, marriages, pensions. Some have had to sell their homes, and it feels really unfair that we are still waiting for a reply on redress.
“The government are dragging their feet. We keep being told that they are working on it at pace – but the phrase within the group is – a snail’s pace.”
The Department of Health and Social Care said: “The harm caused by pelvic mesh continues to be felt today” and “we are fully focused on how best to support patients and prevent future harm.”
“Health Minister Baroness Gillian Merron met patients affected and has committed to providing a further update.”
Government considering recommendations
The government says it is considering the recommendations by the patient safety commissioner last year for a redress scheme, but it’s notable there is no timescale and no reference to the harm caused by valproate or Primodos in their statement.
Dr Alison Cave, chief safety officer at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), said: “Patient safety is our highest priority and no one should stop taking valproate without seeking advice from their healthcare professional.
“Valproate is a highly teratogenic medicine and there is evolving evidence for harms in males, which is why the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) recommended new regulatory measures to reduce the known harms from valproate, including the significant risk of serious harm to the baby if taken during pregnancy and the risk of impaired fertility in male.”
Sanofi, manufacturers of sodium valproate, told us: “We have always worked closely with the MHRA and fully met all our legal and regulatory obligations in relation to valproate which is an essential medicine used to treat a serious and potentially life-threatening condition.
“Sanofi has at all times provided information regarding valproate that reflects current knowledge as approved by MHRA.
“We are committed to working with all concerned stakeholders to continue educating about the risks and precautions for the appropriate use of valproate.”
The former leader of Reform UK in Wales has been sentenced to 10 and a half years after he admitted accepting tens of thousands of pounds in cash to make pro-Russian statements to the media and European Parliament.
Nathan Gill had “abused a position of significant authority and trust” and was “motivated by financial and political gain”, said Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb during remarks at the Old Bailey on Friday.
Gill, 52, of Anglesey, North Wales, had previously pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery between 6 December 2018 and 18 July 2019, corresponding to his time as an MEP.
Nathan Gill is surrounded by media as he arrives at the Old Bailey. Pic: PA
The Old Bailey heard his activities were linked to pro-Russian statements about Ukraine while he was a member of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and subsequently the Brexit Party.
Following an investigation by counter-terrorism police, officers said they believe Gill likely took a minimum of £40,000 in cash and was offering to introduce other British MEPs so they could be bribed. Officers also said they believed some individuals in this case had a direct link to Vladimir Putin.
Nathan Gill pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery. Pic: Met Police
Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC previously told the court the bribery offences related to Gill’s association with pro-Russian Oleg Voloshyn, who had been a Ukrainian government official before 2014 and was sanctioned by the UK in 2022.
Gill’s activities emerged in WhatsApp messages after he was stopped at Manchester Airport on 13 September 2021.
He was about to board a flight to Russia to be an observer in elections there.
Bundles of cash recovered
Police said the messages revealed Voloshyn had tasked Gill to make pro-Russian statements on a reward basis. Counter-terrorism officers said the text of some speeches was provided to Gill, which he delivered almost word-for-word.
In other cases, he was paid to offer commentary to news outlets, such as the pro-Russian media organisation 112 Ukraine.
A search of his home in Wales also uncovered thousands in euros and dollars.
Bundles of cash were recovered from Gill’s home. Pic: Met Police
Pic: Met Police
Greed ‘primary motivation’
Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, described Gill as being motivated by money.
“It appears… greed was his primary motivation. But I think there’s an element of him that had a pro-Russian stance as well, but only he can answer that question, to be honest with you, he never told us that.”
Gill was interviewed in March 2022 and made no comment. He was charged and appeared in court in February 2025.
Gill said no comment when interviewed by officers in 2022. Pic: Met Police
‘A grave betrayal of trust’
During sentencing, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb described Gill’s offending as “sophisticated” and “a grave betrayal of the trust vested in you by the electorate”.
She told him: “You accepted payments from foreign nationals, made statements on important international matters at their behest, utilised scripted material presented as your own, and orchestrated the involvement of other MPs.
“Your misconduct has ramifications far beyond personal honour, which is now irretrievably damaged. It erodes public confidence in democracy when politicians succumb to financial inducement.”
Gill was paid to offer commentary to pro-Russian media outlet, 112 Ukraine. Pic: Met Police
Other UK politicians at risk
Commander Murphy said that police were continuing to investigate other MEPs, including some from the UK.
“What we do know from the conversations with [Oleg] Voloshyn is that Nathan Gill actually offered his services to contact other MEPs, mostly UK MEPs, to also make statements that might be supportive of a Russian position in Ukraine,” he said.
He added: “I do believe that some of the individuals in this case do have direct connections to Vladimir Putin. And I have no doubt that if we were able to, we could follow this trail and it would lead straight to Moscow.”
Commander Dominic Murphy believes greed was Gill’s primary motivation
Gill led the Welsh wing of UKIP between 2014 and 2016 and was a member of the Senedd between 2016 and 2017.
He was an MEP between 2014 and 2020, but left UKIP in 2019 to join Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party – later Reform UK.
Political fallout after prison term
Police have confirmed Nigel Farage has not been part of this investigation, but political rivals have called on the Reform UK leader to launch a thorough investigation.
Defence minister Al Carns, a former colonel in the Royal Marines, said Gill’s actions were “a disgrace”. He added: “I just think wherever we see Russian influence in UK politics, it’s got to be weeded out.”
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Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said “a traitor was at the very top of Reform UK”, referring to Gill, but also launched a direct attack on Mr Farage by calling him, and his party, “a danger to national security”.
“Nigel Farage himself was previously paid to be on Putin’s TV channel, Russia Today, and said he was the world leader he admires the most.
“We must all ask – where do his loyalties really lie? We need a full investigation into Russian interference in our politics,” he said.
Reform UK, which previously kicked Gill out of the party, said in a statement: “Mr Gill’s actions were reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable. We are glad that justice has been served and fully welcome the sentence Nathan Gill has received.”
Liz Saville Roberts, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader, welcomed Gill’s jail sentence “for his acts of betrayal in taking bribes from Russia”.
In a statement, she said: “If the former Reform UK leader in Wales was part of a broader, co-ordinated effort to advance Moscow’s agenda within our democratic institutions, then the public deserves to know the full truth, and how far Russian money and influence reached into Nigel Farage’s inner circle.”
Britons buying cocaine on a Friday night could be inadvertently funding Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The National Crime Agency has revealed a billion-dollar money laundering network is operating in 28 towns and cities across the UK.
Couriers collect “dirty” cash generated from drugs, firearms and immigration gangs, which is then converted into cryptocurrency.
Officials say these illicit transactions have a direct link to “geopolitical events causing suffering around the world”.
This network was first exposed because of Operation Destabilise – and to date, 128 arrests have been made, with more than £25m in cash and digital assets seized.
A poster put up in motorway service station toilets by the NCA. Pic: PA
According to the NCA, the enterprise is so prolific that it purchased a bank to facilitate payments that supported Russia’s military efforts and helped sidestep sanctions.
Posters have been put up in motorway service stations to target couriers, which warn it is “just a matter of time” before they will be arrested.
The NCA’s deputy director for economic crime, Sal Melki, has warned the threat posed by this money laundering network is significant.
He added: “Cash couriers play an intrinsic role in this global scheme. They are in our communities and making the criminal ecosystem function – because if you cannot profit from your crimes, why bother.
“They are paid very little for the risks they take and face years in prison, while those they work for enjoy huge profits.”
Mr Melki went on to warn that “easy money leads to hard time” – and earning just a few hundred pounds through laundering could lead to years behind bars.
Sal Melki
The NCA says Operation Destabilise has already had an impact in criminal circles, with some members of the network now reluctant to operate in London.
Those involved in the money laundering effort have also started to charge higher fees – reflecting the difficulty of cleaning ill-gotten gains.
Cryptocurrencies are often regarded as a haven for criminals because they are perceived to be anonymous, but it is possible to trace these transactions.
Chainalysis is a company that monitors suspicious activity on blockchains, a type of database that keeps records of who sends and receives digital assets – as well as how much.
Its vice president of communications Madeleine Kennedy told Sky News: “Public blockchains are transparent by design, which makes cryptocurrencies a poor vehicle for money laundering.
“With the right tools, law enforcement can trace illicit funds – whether they’re connected to drug trafficking, sanctions evasion, or cybercrime – and use those insights to disrupt networks and recover assets.”
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Ekatarina Zhdanova. Pic: NCA
Last December, a global investigation led by the NCA smashed two networks whose money laundering activities were prevalent in 30 countries.
Bundles of cash were seized during raids, with detectives describing Smart and TGR as the invisible link between “Russian elites, crypto-rich cybercriminals and drug gangs in the UK”.
One of the network’s ringleaders, a Russian national called Ekatarina Zhdanova, is currently in custody in France and awaiting trial for separate financial offences.
Security minister Dan Jarvis added: “This complex operation has exposed the corrupt tactics Russia used to avoid sanctions and fund its illegal war in Ukraine.
“We are working tirelessly to detect, disrupt and prosecute anyone engaging in activity for a hostile foreign state. It will never be tolerated on our streets.”
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