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.”
A council has won its bid to temporarily block asylum seekers from being housed at a hotel in Essex.
Epping Forest District Council sought an interim injunction to stop migrants from being accommodated at the Bell Hotel in Epping, which is owned by Somani Hotels Limited.
A government attempt to delay the application was rejected by the High Court judge earlier on Tuesday.
The interim injunction now means the hotel has to be cleared of its occupants within 14 days.
Somani Hotels said it intended to appeal the decision.
Several protests have been held outside the hotel in recent weeks after an asylum seeker housed there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, was charged with trying to kiss a teenage girl and denies the allegations. He is due to stand trial later this month.
Police officers ahead of a demonstration outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
At a hearing last week, barristers for the council claimed Somani Hotels breached planning rules because the site is not being used for its intended purpose as a hotel.
Philip Coppel KC, for the council, said the problem was “getting out of hand” and “causing great anxiety” to local people.
He said the hotel “is no more a hotel [to asylum seekers] than a borstal to a young offender”.
File pic: PA
Piers Riley-Smith, for Somani Hotels Limited, said a “draconian” injunction would cause “hardship” for those in the hotel, arguing “political views” were not grounds for an injunction to be granted.
He also said contracts to house asylum seekers were a “financial lifeline” for the hotel, which was only 1% full in August 2022, when it was open to paying customers.
Protesters and counter-demonstrators outside The Bell Hotel in July. Pic: PA
The hotel housed migrants from May 2020 to March 2021, then from October 2022 to April 2024, with the council never instigating any formal enforcement proceedings against this use, Mr Riley-Smith said.
They were being placed there again in April 2025 and Mr Riley-Smith said a planning application was not made “having taken advice from the Home Office”.
At the end of the hearing last week, Mr Justice Eyre ordered that Somani Hotels could not “accept any new applications” from asylum seekers to stay at the site until he had made his ruling on the temporary injunction.
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TikTok and Instagram have been accused of targeting teenagers with suicide and self-harm content – at a higher rate than two years ago.
The Molly Rose Foundation – set up by Ian Russell after his 14-year-old daughter took her own life after viewing harmful content on social media – commissioned analysis of hundreds of posts on the platforms, using accounts of a 15-year-old girl based in the UK.
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The charity claimed videos recommended by algorithms on the For You pages continued to feature a “tsunami” of clips containing “suicide, self-harm and intense depression” to under-16s who have previously engaged with similar material.
One in 10 of the harmful posts had been liked at least a million times. The average number of likes was 226,000, the researchers said.
Mr Russell told Sky News the results were “horrifying” and showed online safety laws are not fit for purpose.
Molly Russell died in 2017. Pic: Molly Rose Foundation
‘This is happening on PM’s watch’
He said: “It is staggering that eight years after Molly’s death, incredibly harmful suicide, self-harm, and depression content like she saw is still pervasive across social media.
“Ofcom’s recent child safety codes do not match the sheer scale of harm being suggested to vulnerable users and ultimately do little to prevent more deaths like Molly’s.
“The situation has got worse rather than better, despite the actions of governments and regulators and people like me. The report shows that if you strayed into the rabbit hole of harmful suicide self-injury content, it’s almost inescapable.
“For over a year, this entirely preventable harm has been happening on the prime minister’s watch and where Ofcom have been timid it is time for him to be strong and bring forward strengthened, life-saving legislation without delay.”
Ian Russell says children are viewing ‘industrial levels’ of self-harm content
After Molly’s death in 2017, a coroner ruled she had been suffering from depression, and the material she had viewed online contributed to her death “in a more than minimal way”.
Researchers at Bright Data looked at 300 Instagram Reels and 242 TikToks to determine if they “promoted and glorified suicide and self-harm”, referenced ideation or methods, or “themes of intense hopelessness, misery, and despair”.
They were gathered between November 2024 and March 2025, before new children’s codes for tech companies under the Online Safety Act came into force in July.
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What are the new online rules?
The Molly Rose Foundation claimed Instagram “continues to algorithmically recommend appallingly high volumes of harmful material”.
The researchers said 97% of the videos recommended on Instagram Reels for the account of a teenage girl, who had previously looked at this content, were judged to be harmful.
Some 44% actively referenced suicide and self-harm, they said. They also claimed harmful content was sent in emails containing recommended content for users.
A spokesperson for Meta, which owns Instagram, said: “We disagree with the assertions of this report and the limited methodology behind it.
“Tens of millions of teens are now in Instagram Teen Accounts, which offer built-in protections that limit who can contact them, the content they see, and the time they spend on Instagram.
“We continue to use automated technology to remove content encouraging suicide and self-injury, with 99% proactively actioned before being reported to us. We developed Teen Accounts to help protect teens online and continue to work tirelessly to do just that.”
TikTok
TikTok was accused of recommending “an almost uninterrupted supply of harmful material”, with 96% of the videos judged to be harmful, the report said.
Over half (55%) of the For You posts were found to be suicide and self-harm related; a single search yielding posts promoting suicide behaviours, dangerous stunts and challenges, it was claimed.
The number of problematic hashtags had increased since 2023; with many shared on highly-followed accounts which compiled ‘playlists’ of harmful content, the report alleged.
A TikTok spokesperson said: “Teen accounts on TikTok have 50+ features and settings designed to help them safely express themselves, discover and learn, and parents can further customise 20+ content and privacy settings through Family Pairing.
“With over 99% of violative content proactively removed by TikTok, the findings don’t reflect the real experience of people on our platform which the report admits.”
According to TikTok, they not do not allow content showing or promoting suicide and self-harm, and say that banned hashtags lead users to support helplines.
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‘A brutal reality’
Both platforms allow young users to provide negative feedback on harmful content recommended to them. But the researchers found they can also provide positive feedback on this content and be sent it for the next 30 days.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said: “These figures show a brutal reality – for far too long, tech companies have stood by as the internet fed vile content to children, devastating young lives and even tearing some families to pieces.
“But companies can no longer pretend not to see. The Online Safety Act, which came into effect earlier this year, requires platforms to protect all users from illegal content and children from the most harmful content, like promoting or encouraging suicide and self-harm. 45 sites are already under investigation.”
An Ofcom spokesperson said: “Since this research was carried out, our new measures to protect children online have come into force.
“These will make a meaningful difference to children – helping to prevent exposure to the most harmful content, including suicide and self-harm material. And for the first time, services will be required by law to tame toxic algorithms.
“Tech firms that don’t comply with the protection measures set out in our codes can expect enforcement action.”
Peter Kyle has said opponents of the Online Safety Act are on the side of predators. Pic: PA
‘A snapshot of rock bottom’
A separate report out today from the Children’s Commissioner found the proportion of children who have seen pornography online has risen in the past two years – also driven by algorithms.
Rachel de Souza described the content young people are seeing as “violent, extreme and degrading”, and often illegal, and said her office’s findings must be seen as a “snapshot of what rock bottom looks like”.
More than half (58%) of respondents to the survey said that, as children, they had seen pornography involving strangulation, while 44% reported seeing a depiction of rape – specifically someone who was asleep.
The survey of 1,020 people aged between 16 and 21 found that they were on average aged 13 when they first saw pornography. More than a quarter (27%) said they were 11, and some reported being six or younger.
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
There is one thing scarier than markets lurching around. And that’s markets lurching around without a very compelling explanation.
Just yesterday, the yield on the government’s 30-year bonds – the best measure out there of the UK government’s long-term cost of borrowing – closed at the highest level since 1998, not long after Oasis released the album Be Here Now. Indeed, the yields on pretty much all UK government debt has been creeping up in recent weeks, though not all are back to Britpop era levels.
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In some senses, this looks very odd indeed. After all, the Bank of England just cut interest rates. In normal circumstances, you would expect measures of borrowing costs to be falling across the board. But clearly these are not normal times.
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‘Is the Bank worried about recession risk?’
All of which raises the question: is this a UK-specific phenomenon? Are markets singling out Britain for particular concern, much as they did after Liz Truss’s notorious mini-budget? Actually, there are more questions on top of that one. For instance, is this all about Rachel Reeves’s recent woes, and her need to find another £20bn, give or take, to make her sums add up? Are investors fretting about the Bank of England’s inflation-fighting credibility, given its cutting rates even as prices rise?
The short answer, I’m afraid, is that no one really knows. But a glance at a few metrics can at least provide a bit of context.
The first thing to note is that while government borrowing costs in the UK are up, they have also been rising in other leading economies. The UK, it’s worth saying, is a bit of an outlier with higher yields than in fellow G7 nations. But that’s not exactly a new thing: it’s been the case since the mini-budget. But the UK is a particularly ugly duckling in a lake full of them.
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Are taxes going to rise?
Indeed, look at other nations, and you see that Britain’s budgetary challenges are hardly unique. The US and France have ballooning budget deficits which are rising rapidly. Most European nations have pledged enormous increases in military spending to satisfy Donald Trump’s demands of NATO.
And over the Atlantic, the US administration has just committed to a sweeping set of generous fiscal measures, under its One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Even Elon Musk has voiced concerns about what this means for the deficit (which is set to continue rising ad infinitum, at least on paper).
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All of which brings us to the broader, possibly scarier, lesson. There are signs afoot that while G7 nations could depend for decades on other surplus countries – most notably China and other Asian countries – buying vast amounts of their debt in recent years, that might no longer be the case. In short, even as rich countries borrow like crazy, it’s becoming less clear who will lend them the money.
That’s an enormous conundrum, and not good news for anyone.
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