In his first conference speech as prime minister, Keir Starmer vowed that a Hillsborough law will be introduced in April, before the next anniversary of the football stadium disaster. The law will force public bodies to cooperate with investigations into future disasters and scandals.

This announcement follows a long campaign by the families of the 97 people killed (and hundreds more injured) when part of Hillsborough stadium collapsed in 1989.

The disaster and the inquiry that followed highlighted how justice is so often impeded by the tendency of powerful people to cover up information or refuse to cooperate in investigations.

Initial media coverage of the Hillsborough disaster wrongly blamed football fans for the deaths. A public inquiry cited faults in police control, although its main recommendations related to crowd safety in sports venues.

Crucially, the inquiry did not have access to all relevant evidence, interviewing only a few of those involved as it rushed to produce a narrowly focused report. An inquest ruled the deaths to have been “accidental”.

Bereaved families “were sure that the true context, circumstances and aftermath of Hillsborough had not been adequately explored, established and made public”. Further efforts and campaigns for truth and justice ensued. Families attempted to bring private prosecutions against two of the police officers who had been in charge of operations at the match. Neither were successfully charged.

In 2009, the government made an exception to the normal 30-year restriction on the publication of official documents, to ensure all documents related to the disaster were available to investigators.

Shortly afterwards, the government established the Hillsborough Independent Panel to reexamine the causes of the disaster in light of full access to relevant evidence and in close consultation with Hillsborough families.

The panel’s report emphasised policing failures and found that crowd safety had been “compromised at every level” due to “well known” issues. The report found that police “sought to deflect responsibility” on Liverpool fans.

New inquests concluded that the deaths of 97 had been unlawful, highlighting police and emergency service failures and exonerating the supporters who were initially blamed.

In 2012, South Yorkshire Police apologised, and confirmed the independent panel’s findings that “senior officers sought to change the record of events” in the aftermath.

Decades of campaigning

The long struggle for truth and justice has focused on a lack of honesty and openness by those in power, a willingness to close ranks and blame others, and a failure to disclose relevant information. A Hillsborough law will enforce “a positive duty to tell the truth” and require public officials to “proactively assist investigations”.

Starmer confirmed in his speech that the law will include criminal sanctions for those who breach it. Proposals also include better legal support and representations for future victims of disasters and their families.

Proposals for a Hillsborough law were first put forward in 2017 as a private members’ bill by Andy Burnham, then shadow home secretary. Its passage was interrupted by the 2017 general election, but some aspects were reintroduced in 2022 in another private member’s bill. This, too, was interrupted when Boris Johnson prorogued parliament.

Since becoming Labour leader, Starmer has framed his project as being one committed to returning his party, and the government, back to the service of working people. Passing a law designed and advocated for by working-class people who experienced injustice when their family members died is a clear symbol of this agenda.

The law is also indicative of Starmer’s efforts to frame his government as one that seeks to be transparent, open and consistent. This puts him in contrast to the preceding 14 years of Conservative rule, which were marred by allegations of corruption and misconduct.

High-profile scandals related to the pandemic, including members of the government holding illegal parties in Downing Street and misallocated contracts for PPE (personal protective equipment) to companies owned by people closely connected to government are just two examples.

The announcement comes as Starmer himself, and senior members of his government, have been accused of lack of transparency on donations and gifts. Announcing the Hillsborough law goes some way to repairing his commitment to transparency and service in government, which has lost some of its shine in recent weeks.

Changing the culture

The reaction to the announcement from families and campaigners has been positive.

The director of the charity Inquest, which supports families of those who have died in state-related disasters, called the law “a step forward in providing a legacy for the 97 so that others do not have to go through the pain and trauma of decades of campaigning”.

The potential effect of the law goes far beyond Hillsborough. Other recent events including the Post Office scandal, infected blood and the Grenfell Tower fire have all been affected by a lack of openness and candour by those in power.

But will a law on its own be enough? From Hillsborough to Grenfell to Windrush, what these many injustices highlight is that the problem of secrecy and a lack of transparency and candour is systemic and cultural. The British state has long been marked by a tradition of elitism, a government-knows-best attitude and a scepticism towards citizen engagement, participation and openness.

While the Hillsborough law is indeed a step forward, it is only one piece of the jigsaw of making British governance more open and democratic.