Keir Starmer was warned that Labour should not expect a welcome from the people of Liverpool if a new Hillsborough Law is not put forward within the next three weeks
Labour will not be welcome for its annual conference in Liverpool if the Hillsborough Law has not been sorted in the next three weeks, Keir Starmer has been warned.
MPs heard it would be a “betrayal” to roll back on the party’s promise to bring in a duty of candour to prevent cover-ups like the one that followed the deaths of 97 football fans in 1989. Last year, Mr Starmer used his speech in Liverpool to pledge legislation would be in place by the 36th anniversary of the tragedy – in April this year – but this did not happen.
Government minister Alex Davies-Jones gave an “ironclad guarantee” that Labour will get a Hillsborough Law on the statute book. But she refused to give a timeline, saying ministers would engage with families to make sure they get it right. It comes after Hillsborough families said they are “quietly confident” of a breakthrough and Government sources hinted a final Bill is not far off.
Suspended Labour MP John McDonnell told a Westminster Hall debate: “I want to make this point very, very clear. Labour’s going to its conference three weeks time to Liverpool. If this legislation is not sorted by then, do not expect a welcome in Liverpool from the people there, because we’ve waited too long.”
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Labour MP Ian Byrne, who was present when the disaster unfolded, said: “I couldn’t agree more.” The Liverpool West Derby MP said: “The clock continues to tick while people’s belief in politics and politicians continues to erode. So let me be absolutely crystal clear to the government – a full duty of candour with accountable criminal sanctions is non-negotiable in any legislation bearing the name of Hillsborough. It is not a technicality. It is a moral imperative.”
Mr Byrne said: “There have be plenty of warm words, but warm words don’t deliver justice.” Fellow Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside Kim Johnson told MPs it would be a “massive betrayal, not only for the people of Liverpool families and survivors, but for the whole country”.
Mr Byrne responded: “I absolutely agree 100%.” And Liverpool Wavertree MP Paula Barker said: “This is legislation that our Prime Minister promised at Labour Party conference in Liverpool last year and in our manifesto. So, yes, I am angry that it’s not yet on the statute books.”
Ms Barker said the prospect of watering down the forthcoming Bill “should shame our party”, saying: “We must pass this legislation in full. Anything else will be an affront and betrayal to my city.”
The proposed law would create a legal requirement for public servants to act openly and transparently. It would also offer financial support for bereaved families so they can get legal representation.
Government frontbencher Ms Davies-Jones told MPs: “I want to reaffirm this Government’s ironclad commitment that we will put the Hillsborough law on the statute book. We will deliver on our manifesto commitments to place a legal duty of candour on public servants and authorities, and we will provide legal aid for victims of disasters or state related deaths.”
But she refused to put a timeline on the legislation, stating: “First and foremost, this has to be done with the families first. And we will not proceed with anything that does not have their blessing.”
Last week a campaign source told the Liverpool Echo: “We are quietly confident that we can get the Hillsborough Law the families deserve and be proud of but we still have a long way to go.
“We have made important progress but the devil is in the detail and there is a concern that time is running out.” And a Government source said: “We believe we are now close to finalising Hillsborough Law that families and campaigners will be proud of, and we will introduce it as soon as possible.”
A Hillsborough Law was promised by Mr Starmer as leader of the opposition at the Labour Party Conference in 2022. It was included in the party’s election-winning manifesto and last year the PM told the conference in Liverpool that the law would be in place by the 36th anniversary of the tragedy, on April 15 this year.
But that anniversary passed with no bill laid before Parliament and with a growing frustration. Progress stalled amid concerns in Government over the legal funding and whether the duty of candour is workable – which campaigners reject.
In June 138 MPs and 29 peers from 10 political parties 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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