Sir Keir Starmer made Charlotte Hennessy a promise. Now she is worried he may not keep his word.
Ms Hennessy, whose father Jimmy was one of 97 Liverpool FC fans unlawfully killed in the Hillsborough disaster on 15 April 1989, is part of the campaign for a Hillsborough Law – a campaign years in the making and one which continues to face hurdles.
A key pledge of Sir Keir’s election-winning manifesto, the law – officially the Public Office (Accountability) Bill] – would, through a “duty of candour”, force public officials and contractors to tell the truth in the aftermath of disasters, and is designed to prevent future cover-ups like that faced by the Hillsborough families, who spent decades fighting for the truth.
Ms Hennessy opened the Labour Party conference in Liverpool last September, alongside the prime minister, who again promised her – and those gathered in Merseyside – that he would deliver the law, as the bill had just been laid in parliament.
She told The Independent this week: “This promise has been going on [for] years. He made the promise initially to [fellow Hillsborough campaigner] Margaret Aspinall when he was leader of the opposition, and then he’s made it to me.
“He made it to me in No 10, he made it to me again at the Labour Party conference, he made it again in Westminster.”
The bill was eventually laid in parliament last September, shortly before the party conference, but has since been met with delays.
It is currently at an impasse due to a row over a government amendment regarding how it would apply to those working for the intelligence services – and whether it would affect national security.
The amendment, tabled in January, brought spies within the scope of the legislation, subject to the approval of the head of their service, but campaigners argued this would allow those running the security services to decide whether to disclose information.
Sir Keir had pledged to deliver the law by 15 April 2025 – the 36th anniversary of the disaster – which did not happen.
Now, Ms Hennessy and her fellow campaigners are worried another anniversary will pass without the law on the statute book, with parliament not due to return from recess until 13 April.
The Hillsborough families, as well as those affected by the Horizon Post Office scandals, Manchester Arena terror attack and others, on Monday wrote to the prime minister to express their frustration about the delays.
In their letter to Sir Keir, campaigners said they were very disappointed it had not been reintroduced to parliament since, describing the lack of progress as an “insult”.
They wrote: “Another anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster is fast approaching. Yet the bill has stalled.
“We understand it will have to roll over to the next parliamentary session but have been given no clarity as to what the government intends to do, beyond meaningless reassurances that it is being worked on.
“Ultimately, there is no end in sight.”
They added that the delay is “having a serious, negative impact on countless other families affected by or yet to be affected by state-related deaths and on the wider public”.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood was also criticised by those involved in the campaign, who accused her of being behind the delays.
Their letter says the government’s intervention has created a “carve out for the intelligence services”, while Ms Hennessy said Ms Mahmood had not met with the group.
“She is the minister of MI5, and she won’t meet with us to discuss what her concerns are, so, how are we going to move forward if we can’t have those conversations?
“But also, why isn’t the prime minister advocating for us?”
She said the delay meant Sir Keir is looking “really weak”.
“Who’s running the country? Is it the home secretary or is it the prime minister?” she asked.
“Why isn’t he stepping forward and saying, ‘No, I made this promise to these families, I pledged it in my manifesto, and I’m going to make sure that this government does the right thing’?
”This can’t be watered down. His law has to be delivered in full and without that duty of candour at the heart of it applying to the security services, you can’t call that a Hillsborough Law.”
Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne, himself a Hillsborough survivor, tabled an amendment – in response to the government’s intervention – to ensure the duty of candour covers the intelligence services and those that work for them.
The campaign says that, despite months of talks, the government has not explained why it objects to Mr Byrne’s amendment.
The MP this week told The Independent that delays to the progress of the law are “extremely disappointing”.
“As a Labour MP that stood on the manifesto and has been intimately involved with this campaign and leading in parliament, to have another anniversary come before us with the Hillsborough Law not on the statute book is just so disappointing”, he said.
Mr Byrne, who is the campaign’s parliamentary lead, does not believe the call for spies to be subject to the duty of candour would threaten national security.
He believes the law is “nearly there”, but does not want to weaken it to ensure it is passed.
He said: “This has got to be addressed in a manner which means that the Hillsborough Law actually addresses these situations.
“What we don’t want is a Hillsborough Law with holes in it, that can actually enable state cover-ups. You just can’t have that, that’s not a legacy.”
As the wait for the law goes on, Ms Hennessy now wants to see action and leadership from the prime minister.
“Let’s not forget this Hillsborough Law was in his manifesto”, she said.
“So pick a lane and honour what you said in your manifesto – because there’s either going to be a Hillsborough law in its entirety or there’s not going to be one at all.
“Without this amendment, we don’t have Hillsborough Law in its entirety, and if we can’t be given the opportunity to discuss these issues and concerns, and hear what the government’s concerns are and then answer them, I don’t see how we are going to move forward.
“So there is a very real prospect here that the prime minister is going to go back on his promise and he is going to go back on what he pledged in his manifesto.”
A government spokesperson said: “The Hillsborough disaster will remain in our national consciousness for its tragedy and disgraceful injustice. Our legislation will right these wrongs, changing the balance of power so the state must always act for the people it is supposed to serve.
“We must take the time to get this right, bringing in a bill that is testament to their decades campaigning, while never compromising on national security.
“The families and campaigners have always been at the heart of this process, and we will work with them before bringing this back to parliament.”
