AN MS in calling for an urgent inquiry into Covid hospital deaths.

With latest figures showing that 24.6 per cent of patients who died from Covid in North Wales up to May 2021 were "definitely" or "probably" infected in hospital, Shadow Minister for North Wales and Chief Whip for the Welsh Conservative Group Darren Millar is calling on the Welsh Government to carry out an urgent inquiry.

Figures released by Welsh language news programme Newyddion S4C revealed that across the whole of Wales 1,860 patients who died up to May 2021 were likely to have been infected in hospital.

The Welsh Government has agreed to take part in a UK-wide public inquiry into the handling of Covid, but in light of these latest figures, Mr Millar, MS for Clwyd West, believes an independent inquiry is needed.

He said: “That one in four people who have died from Covid in North Wales caught the virus in hospital is scandalous.

"An urgent inquiry is absolutely essential if we are to learn lessons from what has happened so for the Welsh Government to not recognise this and immediately act on it is absolutely appalling.

“The families of those who were infected in our hospitals need answers and we all desperately need assurances that this will not continue happening.

“Nobody should fear going into hospital, but sadly many patients in North Wales, and indeed across the whole of Wales, will as a result of these figures.

“A UK-wide public inquiry is not good enough, the Welsh Government is responsible for health in Wales and therefore needs to be put under the spotlight of scrutiny.”

A Welsh Government spokesperson told the Journal: “The First Minister has said Wales will be a part of the UK public inquiry into the coronavirus pandemic, which the Prime Minister has announced.

“He has discussed the UK-wide inquiry with UK Government Ministers and said there must be specific chapters which deal exclusively with the experience in Wales. A single UK-wide inquiry is the best way to shine a light and understand the distressing experiences people have had in Wales during this ongoing pandemic.”