Statutory inquiry into Lucy Letby ‘on the table’, government minister admits

Ms Keegan said there are ‘pros and cons’ of statutory versus non-statutory inquiries but families of victims can discuss those with the inquiry’s chair

A statutory inquiry into serial killer nurse Lucy Letby’s crimes is “on the table”, a government minister has said.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan gave the strongest hint yet that the government may strengthen the inquiry, following mounting calls for it to be given legal powers that would compel people to give evidence to uncover possible NHS failings.

Letby, 33, was on Monday given a whole life sentence for the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six others between June 2015 and June 2016 at the Countess of Chester Hospital where she worked.

Senior doctors have raised concerns that NHS bosses ignored complaints about Letby and one manager, Alison Kelly, who was the chief nurse at the hospital at the time of Letby crimes has now been suspended from Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust in Salford where she now works. Ms Kelly has said she will cooperate with the independent inquiry.

Ms Keegan said there were “pros and cons” of statutory versus non-statutory inquiries but she said the families of Letby’s victims will be able to discuss those with the inquiry’s head when the chair is announced.

The admission comes after days of ministers defending the non-statutory basis of the probe, despite a growing chorus of voices calling for it to be upgraded.

Non-statutory inquiries lack the power to force witnesses to produce evidence or give testimony under oath that statutory ones have.

Critics of the probe’s current set-up fear it will be left to “rely on the goodwill” of those involved, rather than being able to compel them to participate.

The grieving families of Letby’s victims have called for the inquiry to be put on a statutory footing, and are joined by former justice secretaries Jack Straw, Lord Falconer and Sir David Lidington.

Lucy Letby has begun her whole-life prison sentence (Cheshire Constabulary) (PA Media)

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has also said a statutory inquiry is the only way to get the “fullest, proper, comprehensive” understanding of what went wrong.

Downing Street on Monday said “all options are on the table”, suggesting ministers are considering upgrading the powers of the inquiry.

And on Tuesday, asked explicitly about a statutory inquiry, Ms Keegan told Times Radio a statutory probe was “on the table”.

It comes as Sir Robert Francis KC, who chaired the inquiry into serious care failings at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, said that the families of Letby’s victims should decide how the inquiry functions.

He told Times Radio: “A chair should be appointed to consult with the interested parties, to consult with the tragic families that have been involved in this, to find out what they want, and you may find there’s not one united voice about this.

“So I would ask them what they feel they want and why they want it and indeed other people.”

Emma Norris the Institute for Government think tank’s expert on public inquiries, told The Independent on Sunday there was a “reasonable chance” the government would be forced to upgrade the inquiry to a statutory one.