'We have got the Hillsborough Law' says tireless campaigner Margaret Aspinall as Bill introduced to Parliament

The Public Office (Accountability) Bill - which will be known as the Hillsborough law - will be introduced to Parliament on Tuesday (September 16) after decades of campaigning by bereaved families.

Ninety-seven Liverpool fans died as a result of a fatal crush during the FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough Stadium on April 15, 1989. Police, the government and parts of the media blamed Liverpool fans for the deaths.

After a 27-year fight for justice by the bereaved families against the cover-up, jurors at an inquest in 2016 ruled that Liverpool fans did not contribute to the disaster and that they had been unlawfully killed, with errors by the police and ambulance service causing or contributing to their deaths.

Since then, the Government has faced calls to introduce the Hillsborough Law, placing a legal duty of candour on public authorities and officials to tell the truth and proactively cooperate with official investigations and inquiries.

Earlier this year, more than 50 MPs signed a motion urging Keir Starmer to deliver the Hillsborough Law without further delay, amidst concerns over a weakened alternative bill and his failure to meet his own deadline of April 15, 2025.

Now, the Prime Minister has confirmed that the new law will introduce “seismic changes”, with lessons learnt from devastating disasters and scandals – including Hillsborough, Orgreave, Windrush, the infected blood scandal and Grenfell. The changes include:

• A new professional and legal Duty of Candour – meaning public officials must act with honesty and integrity at all times - with criminal sanctions for egregious breaches.
• The largest expansion of legal aid in a decade for bereaved families – providing non-means tested help and support for inquests.
• A new offence for misleading the public – our legislation will lead to meaningful cultural changes and a public service that truly acts in the public interest. But for those who don’t, there will be criminal sanctions for the most serious breaches, including for misleading the public in a way which is seriously improper.

Marking the introduction of the Bill, Sir Starmer will welcome some of the families and campaigners to Downing Street tomorrow morning.

He said: "I first met Margaret Aspinall as the Director of Public Prosecutions, and found her courage, and the strength of all the Hillsborough families and survivors, utterly breathtaking. Faced with smears and lies about their loved ones, they held onto the truth and battled for decades to prove it.

“I made a promise to her, and to many others who faced terrible tragedies - incredible campaigners like Pooja Kanda and Figen Murray - that I would act so no one else would need to suffer the way they had.

"Today, I am proud to be making good on the promise I made to Margaret by bringing in the Hillsborough Law. I know nothing can ever undo the years of injustice those families have endured. But I hope it can add to the already profound legacy they have created in memory of the 97.

"Hillsborough will always remain in our national consciousness for its tragedy and disgraceful injustice. But today it can also be remembered for the way it changed our country for the better. Because with this law, we are changing the balance of power in Britain and ensuring that the State can never hide from the people it is supposed to serve.

"Make no mistake - this a law for the 97, but it is also a law for the sub-postmasters who suffered because of the Horizon scandal, the victims of infected blood, and those who died in the terrible Grenfell Tower fire. This is change only this Government can deliver.”

Mrs Aspinall’s 18-year-old son James was one of the 97 victims who lost their lives at Hillsborough.

The former chairperson of the now disbanded Hillsborough Family Support Group fought for justice for more than three decades and dedicated her life to supporting those affected. She was awarded the Freedom of Knowsley earlier this year.

Speaking about the new bill, Mrs Aspinall said: “It’s been a long journey to get here. I am so grateful to the Prime Minister for fulfilling his promise to me.

“This campaign wasn’t about just us, it is about the ordinary people of this country, hopefully this law will mean no one will ever have to suffer like we did.

“This promise now was well worth waiting for, for the good of the people. We have got the Hillsborough Law!”

Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, Steve Rotheram added: “Today is a landmark moment – not just for our city, but for the whole country. A day of history making and permanent legislative change. An opportunity to enact the Bill as a lasting legacy to the 97 Hillsborough victims, unlawfully killed in 1989.

“The tabling of The Hillsborough Law is the biggest victory for ordinary people campaigning and organising together in generations – and the most important change in how our justice system treats ordinary citizens - since the Human Rights Act.

“We must never forget that while it was Liverpool supporters who went to Hillsborough that day, the tragedy touched families and communities right across the country. But the same injustices had, and continue to be, a stain on our country’s reputation for fairness and justice. Until today.

"The Hillsborough families will never see true justice done for their loved ones. But because of their tenacity, dignity and refusal to be silenced, no other bereaved families will ever have to endure the same ordeal. That is their legacy – and it will stand for generations to come.

“This Bill is about rebalancing the scales of justice. It is a fitting tribute to the Hillsborough families’ decades-long fight, and proof of the power of ordinary people to force extraordinary change.

“And while Hillsborough was the catalyst, this reform could just as easily be named after Grenfell, the infected blood scandal, the Post Office scandal or a long list of other injustices.

“I want to thank the Government for listening and acting. This legislation ensures that the lessons of Hillsborough are now finally written into law – so that no other families are ever left to fight alone.”

A spokesperson for Hillsborough Law Now campaign warned that the Bill must not be watered down. They said: “It is only the full implementation of this bill that will achieve that and the Government will need to be brave and ignore the vested interests that will attempt to water it down as it progresses through Parliament.

“We will work with the government, challenge them and hold them to account and deliver on the promise to enact the Hillsborough Law.

Charlotte Hennessy, whose father Jimmy was unlawfully killed at Hillsborough added: “Today is monumental. But it’s only the beginning. We will continue to oversee the rest of this process and ensure that Sir Starmer’s commitment is not watered down.