Dozens of MPs and peers have written to Keir Starmer to warn that the Hillsborough Law being drawn up is ‘likely to fall far short of what was promised to the families’
Nearly 140 MPs have urged Keir Starmer not to betray families with a “toothless replacement” for the Hillsborough Law.
Dozens of MPs and peers have warned the legislation is “likely to fall far short of what was promised to the families”. Mr Starmer has repeatedly vowed to introduce the Hillsborough Law – at party conferences, in Labour’s manifesto and in conversations with families affected by the 1989 football disaster.
But the Prime Minister failed to bring it forward before the anniversary of the tragedy in April – despite a commitment to do so in September 2024. Now families fear their loved ones will never get the legacy he pledged.
Some 138 MPs and 29 peers from 10 political parties have called on the PM to drive through the bill “as you promised to do, and not some toothless replacement”.
In a letter to the PM, they said: “We have no doubt that the attempts to replace the Bill with wholly deficient and ineffective redrafts are led by those who are most likely to be affected by Hillsborough Law: senior civil servants and public institutions who want to retain their impunity in protecting their reputations above telling the truth.
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“A replacement bill – without the key provisions outlined above – will not command the support of Hillsborough families and survivors, nor other victims of state cover-ups.”
The original Hillsborough Law, drawn up by legal experts and presented to Parliament in 2017, was designed to ensure justice would never again be blocked by public officials trying to conceal wrongdoing.
It would create a legal duty of candour for public authorities and officials, such as police officers, with criminal penalties for lying or withholding information. It also included a commitment to funding to help victims in legal battles with official bodies.
The move has been backed by survivors of other state injustices, such as the infected blood scandal, the nuclear test veterans and the Post Office scandal. But progress stalled amid concerns in Government over the legal funding and whether the duty of candour is workable – something campaigners reject.
One campaigner told the Mirror that officials had told them they made a mistake calling it a Hillsborough Law, and admitted “we should never have promised the families what they wanted”.
Another added: “Putting politics aside, this Government is showing awesome ineptitude. It could be an easy win for Starmer but his team seems determined to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.”
Campaigners have not been shown the latest draft of the bill, and say they’ve been told it will no longer be referred to as “the Hillsborough Law”.
The new version is expected to be laid in Parliament before the Labour’s annual conference in Liverpool in September. It is expected to give public officials a duty to tell the truth only at inquests or court cases, when they are already at risk of perjury.
Sources say there is “a huge carve-out for the military and security services”, raising questions over its ability to prevent scandals like MI5’s failures over the Manchester Arena bombings, and the Ministry of Defence ’s cover-up of the Nuked Blood Scandal.
Labour MP Ian Byrne, a Hillsborough survivor who represents Liverpool West Derby, who coordinated the letter, said: “If the Prime Minister doesn’t enact the Hillsborough Law in full, it will be seen as another betrayal of Hillsborough families, survivors and victims of other state cover-ups.”
Pete Weatherby KC, co-author of the original law who represented 22 of the families at the Hillsborough inquest, said: “The Prime Minister must now show leadership and deliver on his promise to deliver real cultural change, not a chocolate fireguard to protect the interests of those who want to remain free to lie and hide official wrongdoing.”
Co-author Elkan Abrahamson, who represented 20 families during the Hillsborough inquests, said: “The Hillsborough families are rightly angry at the way the Government has let them down. We stand with them and the many other campaign groups who will not give up the fight until the Hillsborough Law is enacted in full.”
A spokesman for the campaign group Hillsborough Law Now said: “We cannot support what we have not seen, and what we have seen was not supportable.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “The Hillsborough disaster is one of the greatest stains on British history, and the families of those who lost loved ones have shown endless determination to get justice.
“Having consulted with campaign groups, we know more time is needed to draft the best version of a Hillsborough Law. We remain fully committed to bringing in this legislation at pace, which will include a legal duty of candour for public servants and criminal sanctions for those who refuse to comply.”
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