Government Delay in Compensation for Pelvic Mesh Victims Deemed Morally Unacceptable
Campaigners have condemned the government’s ongoing failure to establish a compensation scheme for women harmed by pelvic mesh implants as “morally unacceptable.” Thousands of women continue to suffer life-altering complications following transvaginal mesh procedures, with some unable to walk or return to work.
Saturday marks two years since England’s patient safety commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, outlined plans for financial redress for women affected by pelvic mesh implants. Despite this, ministers have yet to commit to compensating those harmed by this medical scandal. The proposals, detailed in the 2024 report, also included compensation for children left disabled due to exposure to certain drugs during pregnancy.
The government recently acknowledged that no timetable exists for providing compensation to victims of pelvic mesh and sodium valproate. Dr Hughes has pledged to escalate the issue directly to the prime minister to seek urgent action.
Campaigners warn that the government’s inaction is exacerbating the mental health struggles of those impacted by these scandals.
"As every week, month, year passes, women are getting more frustrated, upset. You can’t put their pain on hold. A lot of them have had to give up work or reduce their hours. They’re struggling to make ends meet. We have some members, they’ve had to sell their homes and move in with elderly parents, marriages broken down …
We see those women at three in the morning trying to put up a post saying, ‘I don’t want to be here any more’ … I’m so angry that these women have their lives ruined and no one is taking accountability by giving them compensation … it’s morally unacceptable.”
— , founder of the advocacy group Sling the Mesh
For many years, pelvic mesh was considered the gold standard treatment for stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse in women, conditions commonly arising after childbirth or during menopause.
“None of us were warned about the risks. We were all told it was a gold standard surgery,”said Sansom.
Removal surgery for mesh implants carries significant risks, including organ damage, severe bleeding, serious infections, and blood clots in the legs and lungs. Surgeons have likened the procedure to removing chewing gum from hair due to its complexity.
The Hughes report was commissioned in response to the independent inquiry led by Julia Cumberlege, which made nine recommendations aimed at delivering justice to women harmed by pelvic mesh, the epilepsy drug sodium valproate, and the hormone pregnancy test Primodos.
"No government response to the Hughes report after two long years since its publication is insulting to the thousands of mesh- and valproate-harmed women and children. This is more than just a response to a report; this is about restorative justice.”
— Sharon Hodgson, Labour MP and chair of the First Do No Harm all-party parliamentary group
Hodgson, whose mother suffered debilitating pain and recurrent infections following a pelvic mesh implant, criticized the government’s lack of action as deeply disrespectful.
"All of these women and the families, they were all gaslit. They were all told it was all in their heads: ‘There’s nothing wrong with you.’ And the women who would have children damaged by valproate, again, they [doctors] went: ‘Oh, this drug’s safe.’ So they’ve had years of being gaslit.
This compensation would say loud and clear that this was not all in your head. It was not your fault. And what happened was wrong.”
Dr Hughes emphasized the human impact of the delays:
“These are not abstract policy questions; they are about real people whose lives have been fundamentally changed by systemic failures in healthcare. Every month of delay compounds the injustice these patients have already endured.
I will be approaching No 10 directly to secure the commitment to action that has been missing for two years.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson stated:
“We recognise the significant impact that sodium valproate and pelvic mesh have had on people and their families.
This is a complex issue and our priority is to ensure any response is fair, balanced and sensitive to those affected. We are carefully considering the recommendations within the Hughes report, in collaboration with relevant departments, and we aim to provide an update in due course.”
