New 'Hillsborough Law' set to be approved by MPs

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FT Desk

The Public Office (Accountability) Bill, otherwise known as The Hillsborough Bill, could be set to become official law within the next few months.

The legislation is expected to be passed by the House of Commons on Tuesday after a delay in parliament in January. It will create a legal duty for public officials to tell the truth in official civil or criminal enquiries, after it was confirmed that police spread false narratives about Liverpool supporters in the aftermath of the Hillsborough Disaster.

On 15 April 1989, during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough Stadium, a crush in the stands left 96 fans dead in the immediate aftermath.

A 97th victim, Stephen Whittle, died in 2021 from trauma linked to the crush, taking his own life after suffering from survivor's guilt after giving his ticket to the match to a friend, who died in the disaster.

Police blamed the behaviour of Liverpool fans for the incident and even took to withholding evidence to cover their own mistakes.

In 2016, an inquest determined the supporters had been unlawfully killed and it was the police who had caused or contributed to their deaths.

The reason for the January delay on the law was that certain intelligence agency members wanted to retain the right not to comply with it, should they believe that revealing certain information could compromise national security.

Family members of those who died in the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing campaigned for that amendment to be left out of bill negotiations as they believe intelligence services did not provide an "accurate picture" of the intelligence it held on the perpetrator.

Government officials, police, public officials and now those in the intelligence service will need to comply with the Public Office (Accountability) Bill, MPs confirmed.

Hillsborough survivor Ian Byrne MP, who has led the parliamentary campaign for the law, told the BBC: "I'm absolutely delighted, and above all relieved, that we have finally secured the Hillsborough Law.

"This is a lasting legacy for the 97, for the survivors, the bereaved families, and for every person who has suffered at the hands of the state and been denied truth and justice."

The BBC reports that Andy Burnham, widely expected to replace Keir Starmer as prime minister, was a key figure in convincing MPs not to include the amendment for intelligence services.

Burnham said the introduction of the Hillsborough Law to the Commons would be "a major moment in the long fight to end the cover-up culture and secure a country based on truth, justice and accountability".

He said: "We owe the Hillsborough families and all the campaigners our profound thanks for standing firm for what is right and never giving in."

Burnham continued: "We must never forget that an entire English city correctly cried injustice for 20 years but was blanked by the powers-that-be."