Jeremy Hunt has apologised to the families of the victims of serial child killer Lucy Letby, saying he was sorry “for anything that didn’t happen that could potentially have prevented such an appalling crime”.

Mr Hunt was health secretary at the time the former nurse murdered seven babies and tried to murder seven others at the Countess of Chester Hospital’s neonatal unit in 2015 and 2016.

The MP and former chancellor told the Thirlwall Inquiry Letby’s crimes were “a terrible tragedy” which “happened on my watch” and “although I don’t bear direct personal responsibility for everything that happens in every ward in the NHS, you do have ultimate responsibility for the NHS”.

He added: “I want to put on the record my apologies to the families for anything that did not happen that potentially could have prevented such an appalling crime.”

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Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt arrives at the Thirlwall Inquiry. Pic: PA

Mr Hunt said medical examiners should be trained to see the signs or patterns of malicious harm in the work of a healthcare professional and that having “malicious actors” such as Dr Harold Shipman and Letby at the backs of their minds could make a “big difference”.

The inquiry heard that a non-statutory rollout of medical examiners in England and Wales began in 2019.

They provide independent scrutiny of causes of death, address any concerns from bereaved families, work with coroners and review medical records.

Since last September all deaths in any health setting in England and Wales that are not investigated by a coroner are being reviewed by NHS medical examiners.

The inquiry is examining how Letby was able to carry out her crimes and the conduct of others at the hospital and the culture in the wider NHS.

Letby, from Hereford, the UK’s most prolific child killer of modern times, is serving fifteen whole life terms in prison after she was initially convicted at Manchester Crown Court in August 2023.

Lucy Letby arrested
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The moment Lucy Letby was arrested

The 35-year-old killed her victims by injecting the infants with insulin or air or force-feeding them with milk.

Last year, she tried to challenge her convictions at the Court of Appeal twice, but lost both bids.

In December, lawyers for Letby said they would make a fresh bid to challenge them on the grounds that the lead prosecution medical expert at her trial was “not reliable”.

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One of the country’s most senior judges, Lady Justice Thirlwall, is leading the inquiry at Liverpool Town Hall. Its findings are expected in the autumn.

Police are also continuing their investigation into Letby and the care of hundreds of other babies she looked after during her career.

Chair of the inquiry Lady Justice Thirlwall at Liverpool Town Hall, ahead of hearings into the murders and attempted murders of babies by nurse Lucy Letby. The inquiry will examine how the nurse was able to murder babies on the Countess of Chester Hospital's neonatal unit. Letby was convicted of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of seven others, with two attempts on one child, when she worked on the neonatal unit at the hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby is servi
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Chair of the inquiry Lady Justice Thirlwall at Liverpool Town Hall. Pic: PA

Detectives have confirmed they interviewed her under caution in prison over more deaths and incidents in Chester and also at Liverpool Women’s Hospital, where she spent time on placement in 2012 and early 2015.