What is a Hillsborough Law and why has government rejected it?

Families and campaigners have been left disappointed again - here is what they were calling for and what was missing from today's announcement

What is a Hillsborough Law and why has the government rejected it?

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After six years, the government has finally responded to Bishop James Jones' report into the experiences of the families of the victims of the Hillsborough Disaster.

And after that long wait, the families have been met with that familiar feeling of disappointment after the government stopped well short of delivering the real, lasting change for which they have campaigned for so long.

The government response has promised some changes, but it is a way off the demands of those who have resolutely called for a Hillsborough Law in full. Here we take a look at what a Hillsborough Law actually is - and where the government has fallen short.

What is a Hillsborough Law?

A Hillsborough Law has been developed over a number of years and is seen by the families of the victims as the full package of measures that will ensure that other bereaved families do not go through the same painful experiences as they did.

The campaign has brought together a broad coalition of families, activists, leaders and politicians who want to achieve a lasting legacy for justice following the 1989 disaster. It is a package of measure that Keir Starmer and the Labour Party have committed to delivering in full if the party wins power.

Some of the measures in the campaign originated from Bishop Jones' report, with others developed since. The campaign calls for the following measures to be enshrined in law:

• A Charter for Families Bereaved Through Public Tragedy legally binding on all public bodies.
• A statutory duty of candour on public servants during all forms of public inquiry and criminal investigation.
• Proper participation of bereaved families at inquests, through publicly funded legal representation and an end to near limitless legal spending by public bodies.
• A Public Advocate to act for families of the deceased after major incidents, as Maria Eagle is rightly arguing.

What was in the government's response?

Today the government effectively said that a full scale Hillsborough Law was not needed. Instead they committed to signing a 'Hillsborough charter' that pledges a commitment by government departments to transparency and truth following major disasters.

Today's announcement does not pave the way for a legally enforceable duty of candour on public servants, to ensure they tell the truth in all official investigations and inquiries, as is demanded in a Hillsborough Law. Instead there are plans to create what is effectively a code of conduct that is legally enforceable - and only affects police officers and no other public officials.

On the key aspect of ensuring that bereaved families have access to the same funding for legal representation as public bodies, the government only agreed to consult on the measures.

The Ministry of Justice has already announced it will establish an Independent Public Advocate (IPA) to provide support for victims of major disasters in England and Wales.

What has the reaction been?

Disappointment and frustration. After six years of waiting, those who have campaigned for lasting change following the Hillsborough Disaster will have hoped for a lot more than this.

Elkan Abrahamson, solicitor at Broudie Jackson Canter and director of Hillsborough Law Now: “What we have heard from the Home Secretary today is misleadingly being characterised as a 'Hillsborough Law'. It isn’t. The one relevant clause in the Criminal Justice Bill (clause 73), falls way short of what campaigners have asked for, it is not a 'Hillsborough Law', and it does not have the support of the families.

"It merely provides for a meaningless code of conduct for the police which does not add to what already exists. It lacks any accountability for other public servants, for national and local public services, and for private companies and their officers responsible for public health and safety."

Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne, who was at Hillsborough on the day of the disaster said: “I like many others will feel let down today and feel as though this is a world away from the effective legislation we desperately need. I’m really, really worried that it will not prevent another Hillsborough-style state cover-up.”

He added: “Without a legal duty of candour on all public servants hardwired into our justice system, we will see continued injustices from public officials who lie on the stand with impunity."

Professor Phil Scraton, the primary author of the Hillsborough Independent Panel's report, said: "The unacceptable delay in responding to James Jones' report is the latest example of government complacency in responding to the suffering long endured by Hillsborough bereaved families and survivors.

"Following the publication of two extensive reports on the disaster in 1990 and 1995, in 1997 we published a Home Office commissioned report 'Beyond Disaster'. Its key recommendation was to establish a Charter for the Bereaved. 53 recommendations focused on central and local government responses and obligations in the aftermath of tragedies, the need for integrated organisational structures for inter-agency co-operation, together with specialist crisis support for the bereaved and survivors.

"The report was shelved. In 2012 the findings of Hillsborough Independent Panel Report, for which I headed the research and was primary author, brought a 'double apology' from the Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, a new criminal investigation and new inquests.

"The latter reversed the verdicts of accidental death, finding that all who died had been killed unlawfully while attributing primary responsibility to the South Yorkshire Police and exonerating fans of any responsibility. Since then it has taken eleven years for the Government to respond and seven years since the James Jones' report. Yet still the Government fails to address the core issues initially raised by our research 26 years ago and repeated in. While 97 died at Hillsborough, many others' lives have been cut short as a consequence of their struggle for justice. Today constitutes yet another blow to dignified families and survivors whose determination and fortitude has given hope to so many people involved in other campaigns."

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