Andrew Evans was infected with HIV and hepatitis C by contaminated NHS blood products when he was five. At 16, he developed Aids, extinguishing his dreams of becoming a doctor. As we report today, in the following four years, his parents were repeatedly told that each next infection would be his last. He is now 29; thanks to medical advances, a powerful combination of drugs keeps the virus at bay, but brings horrendous side effects.

As compensation for this error or, as the government refers to it, this 'unavoidable inadvertent systematic failure', he was awarded £21,000 plus a monthly allowance of around £300. A thousand others, most of them haemophiliacs, received similar payments. When the settlement was agreed, it was based on the belief that victims were facing imminent death. No one thought then there would be survivors in 2006, but there are - around 400 with HIV and thousands more living with hepatitis C. Many now find themselves in a dire financial position.

These largely forgotten victims of one of the worst medical blunders in NHS history deserve help now. The Haemophilia Society has sent the Department of Health a detailed compensation plan for a second payment, along with increases in the monthly allowance. It deserves a generous response.

Government has a moral responsibility to those who placed their faith in the national blood supply system that became infected with a deadly disease. It is unacceptable for these survivors to be left in poverty. As part of the original settlement, the victims were required to waive their rights to take any further action against the government. Because they were told they had only a few years to live, the last thing on their mind was their long-term financial security.

Ministers should ignore this legal waiver and act humanely. They must increase the financial help available as a matter of urgency.