Overview

• The government has laid the Public Office (Accountability) Bill before Parliament, proposing a statutory duty of candour with criminal penalties for serious breaches and non-means-tested legal aid for bereaved families.
• Campaigner Charlotte Hennessy told delegates their involvement continues through the bill’s passage and said Keir Starmer assured her the legislation “doesn’t need watering down.”
• Andy Burnham said he worked over the summer to ensure the government bill mirrors the version he first introduced in 2017 and that it is strong enough to be called a Hillsborough Law.
• Supporters of a legal duty of candour include people affected by other state-related injustices, including the Grenfell Tower fire and the Post Office Horizon scandal.
• The conference highlighted the campaign with a rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone, with Starmer and delegates standing to honor the families’ decades-long effort.