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Post campaign goes to No. 10

A Bristol Evening Post campaign to win compensation for a city man, left disabled following a routine whooping cough injection as a baby, has been sent to No. 10.

Enid and Ivor Needs have written to Tony Blair asking him to cut the red tape they say is stopping their son Matthew receiving the compensation to which they believe he is entitled.

In their letter they tell the PM of their long battle for “justice” launched when their son was still a tot.

He is now 25, 6ft 2ins, has a mental age of three, cannot form sentences, still wears a nappy at night, suffers from regular fits and has no sense of danger.

Earlier this year, disability minister Hugh Bayley agreed to look again at Matthew’s case after he missed out on a massive Government compensation package in the summer.

He was one of just two people not to get a penny from the £60m package to give hundreds of families of vaccine-damaged children up to £100,000 each.

But since then there has been no more news.

Mr Needs said: “Despite all the support we have for our case it seems to have reached a standstill. We hope the Prime Minister can break the deadlock.

“This waiting can’t go on much longer. We hope Mr Blair really takes the time to look into our case. If he does we are sure he will see there has been a grave injustice.

“We have had so many false hopes over the past 25 years. and Mr Blair is in a unique position to give us the news we have waited for all this time.”

The letter has also been sent to Liberal Democrat Leader Charles Kennedy, Bristol East MP Jean Corston and the Solicitor General Ross Cranston.

Mr Needs said: “Our campaign has been hindered by other people’s mistakes from day one. I am sure if Mr Blair looks into our case he will see it our way.

“We have dozens of medical experts supporting our case, but still the Government is taking notice of a flawed medical tribunal more than 10 years ago.”

In 1980, the second of two medical tribunals ruled against Matthew case because it was claimed his injuries were not caused by the vaccine.

Leading specialists support his case but it cannot be re-examined – because the original GP’s report alleging his condition was caused by flu has been lost.

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