HEALTH secretary Jeane Freeman is facing claims she “must resign” and “apologise” for hospital death “cover up”.

The Cumnock MSP is in the firing line with demands for her to be sacked over a child cancer patient dying.

It has emerged that their death could be linked to the water supply at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow that Ms Freeman is in charge of in her ministerial role.

Now the Scottish Conservatives have blasted the politician accusing her of hiding details from the public.

This comes after Ms Freeman admitted she has known about the death since September, but has refused to release the information.

She insisted she did so to protect “importance of patient confidentiality”.

The scandal is the latest crisis to hit the “super hospital” after patients died at there in January following contraction of infections from pigeon droppings.

Shadow health secretary Miles Briggs has said Ms Freeman’s time is up in the position.

He said: “There’s no way Jeane Freeman can continue in the role now the details of this case have been made clear.

“It should not take a whistleblower and an opposition MSP to drag the truth out of this SNP government.

“It’s completely unacceptable.

“Patients will be absolutely furious that such a serious failure has been covered up by this SNP government.

“The health secretary must apologise to the family and resign or, if she refuses, be sacked.”

Ms Freeman said: “Following the announcement of a public inquiry into issues at the QEUH and Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh on September 17, I received correspondence on September 20 from the bereaved parent of a child who had died after receiving treatment at the QEUH in 2017.

“This was the first time I had been made aware of this child’s death.

“On the date I received the letter, the ward in which haematology and oncology patients were receiving care, 6A, was closed to new admissions and had been since August 2019.

“On October 23, I wrote to the parent expressing my condolences for their very sad loss and I would like to again take this opportunity to do so.

“I also advised them that I was ensuring that senior staff from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde would make personal contact with them to address the questions I was sure they would have.

“Following my intervention I have checked and been assured that communication has been established, which will provide the necessary information for the family. I also made clear to the parent my intention that the public inquiry will be an opportunity for the voices of families to be heard and for answers to be provided.

“I am at all times aware of the importance of patient confidentiality and so rightly I believe, I did not treat this correspondence as a public matter. The ward in which the child concerned in the correspondence I received on September 20, 2A/2B, was closed and undergoing remedial and upgrading work. Any suggestion that children were at risk after I received this information is therefore incorrect.”