MPs pass Hillsborough law, Burnham calls it ‘rewiring of the state’
6 reported
MPs have approved the Hillsborough law, a public office accountability bill that places a duty of candour on public officials, making it a prosecutable offence to lie or evade during inquiries into tragedies. Andy Burnham, in his first Commons intervention since returning as an MP, described the bill as a significant step toward accountability for the Hillsborough families and "truly a rewiring of the state." The bill had been delayed after relations with families broke down in January over a potential carve-out for serving intelligence officers, but a compromise was brokered over the weekend based on families' proposals. Prime Minister Keir Starmer personally engaged with security services chiefs in recent weeks to find a breakthrough, and the attorney general Richard Hermer was closely involved in drafting the compromise. The bill also includes a £185m expansion in legal aid for bereaved families, the largest in a decade, steered by justice minister Sarah Sackman. The bill will still need to go through the Lords.
What’s reported
The public office (accountability) bill puts a duty of candour on public officials, meaning those who lie or evade during inquiries into tragedies would face prosecution.
The bill was delayed after relations with families broke down in January over a potential carve-out for serving intelligence officers.
A compromise was brokered over the weekend based on proposals from the families about how the duty of candour would apply to serving intelligence officers.
Under the compromise, the chair of an inquiry would hear an application from MI5 bosses if they believe some information should be withheld on national security grounds, but they cannot fail to provide the evidence.
The bill includes a £185m expansion in legal aid to bereaved families, the largest in a decade.
The bill will still need to go through the Lords.
Key figures
Andy Burnham, MP and former mayor
Keir Starmer, prime minister
Margaret Aspinall, Hillsborough campaigner
Anneliese Midgley, Knowsley MP
Kevan Jones, joint intelligence committee member
Jeremy Wright, Conservative MP
Richard Hermer, attorney general
Shabana Mahmood, home secretary
Charlotte Hennessy, Sue Roberts, Steve Kelly, Hillsborough law campaigners
Sarah Sackman, justice minister
Sources: The Guardian
