Hillsborough Law means 'long fight for the truth was not in vain'

The Prime Minister has pledged to introduce a ‘Hillsborough Law’ that will prevent cover-ups and force public servants to be truthful during public inquires.

During the first King’s Speech, it was confirmed the new Labour government would progress with the legislation named in honour of the 97 Liverpool fans who died at the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, and their families and friends who have campaigned for the new law.

The previous Government signed a Hillsborough Charter last year, promising the family injustices suffered by those involved in the disaster will never be repeated, but stopped short of introducing the Public Authority (Accountability) Bill.

Speaking on behalf of Keir Starmer’s new government at the State Opening of Parliament on July 17, King Charles said: "My Government will take steps to help rebuild trust and foster respect. Legislation will be brought forward to introduce a duty of candour for public servants."

Metro Mayor and Hillsborough campaigner, Steve Rotheram, said the news was proof that ‘if you do fight, you can get justice’, while the Hillsborough Law Now campaign hailed the announcement as ‘life changing’.

The new legislation will create a legal duty of candour on public authorities and officials to tell the truth and proactively cooperate with official investigations and inquiries. Failure to comply would become a criminal offence, and the bill will also ensure that victims of disasters or state-related deaths are entitled to a parity of legal representations during inquests and inquiries as well as a public advocate to represent families.

Speaking at a Liverpool City Region Combined Authority meeting, Mr Rotheram said: “For 20-odd years, people in this city and city region stood alone and fought for justice, and I’ll try desperately not to get upset. The enormity of this is overwhelming. We were promised two years ago in the (M&S Bank) arena by Keir Starmer when he was leader of the opposition and he said if we get into power, we’ll ensure we have a Hillsborough Law Now, as it was called.

“That’s happened and I just think that’s so fundamental to the DNA of the people here who stood alone but changed the law, have changed things in statute, so that anybody else who goes through what the families, the survivors, campaigners and everybody else went through, will never have to face the same sort of hurdles they did.

“The main result of the Hillsborough Law is that they will level up the scales of justice in this country. It will force people in senior positions, civil servants and those in public bodies to do something you think would be a matter of course, to tell the truth. I just think that was a wow moment for me.

“There’s lots of other good stuff in it, but locally, just to see that everybody who has played their part in that, has changed the law in this country for the better. It shows you, if you do fight, you can get justice, even if unfortunately it’s not in the way we’re going to get anybody held accountable for the unlawful killing of 97 people but we’ll change the justice system.”

Leader of Liverpool Council, Cllr Liam Robinson added: “We owe a great deal of thanks to those who lobbied and campaigned so hard for this. That is why, at the next Council Meeting on 24 July, I have put forward a motion placing on record our thanks for the decades of dedication, courage and solidarity shown by the Hillsborough families, survivors, campaigners and the citizens of Liverpool.

“Let us not forget that, without their strength and conviction, the truth would never have come to light .Their determination will prevent others from going through the struggles that they did, and will mean that their long fight for the truth was not in vain.”