Campaigners who claim hormone pregnancy tests damaged their children have written to Tory leadership candidates Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt asking them to help families get justice after a 50-year wait.
The Record has led the way in reporting on those affected by Primodos, made by drug firm Schering, and given to women from 1958 to 1978 before it was taken off the market amid fears of a possible link to birth defects.
Campaigners blame Primodos and other hormone test drugs for causing abnormalities in thousands of babies.
Marie Lyon, chairwoman of the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy tests said the drug company “knew what it was doing and they did nothing”.
In the letter she said: “We’ve faced decades of silence and now we want answers.”
Now campaigners have demanded whoever becomes the next Prime Minister to implement the findings of an ongoing Government review.
Today we publish their open letter to Johnson and Hunt in full.
Last night, a spokesperson for Hunt said: “We look forward to listening to the recommendations of the review.”
Johnson did not respond to the Record's request for comment.
Last night, Bayer, which is the owner of drug firm Schering, said: “Bayer denies Primodos was responsible for causing any deformities in children.
“UK litigation in respect of Primodos, against Schering ended in 1982 when the claimants’ legal team, with the approval of the court, decided to discontinue the litigation on the grounds there was no realistic possibility of showing that Primodos caused the congenital abnormalities alleged.
“Since the discontinuation of the legal action in 1982, no new scientific knowledge has been produced which would call into question the validity of the previous assessment of there being no link between the use of Primodos and the occurrence of such congenital abnormalities.”
