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UK Government Promises Response to Hughes, Cumberlege Reports

8/13/2026

31 5 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

Dr Henrietta Hughes, patient safety commissioner, wrote to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in June and missed the 16 July deadline without reply.
The UK government told the BBC it will address the Cumberlege and Hughes reports “in due course.”
Susan, a mother, says the government knew sodium valproate caused risks yet kept licensing it for pregnant women, leaving families to wait six years since the 2020 Cumberlege Report for redress.

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Story summary

Dr Henrietta Hughes, patient safety commissioner, wrote to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in June and missed the 16 July deadline without reply.
The UK government told the BBC it will address the Cumberlege and Hughes reports “in due course.”
Susan, a mother, says the government knew sodium valproate caused risks yet kept licensing it for pregnant women, leaving families to wait six years since the 2020 Cumberlege Report for redress.