Government responds to Human Rights Committee 'Hillsborough Law' report — JCHR
In its response, the Government restated its commitment to implement a 'Hillsborough law' including a duty of candour on public servants and authorities.
Government responds to Human Rights Committee ‘Hillsborough Law’ report - Committees - UK Parliament
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Government responds to Human Rights Committee ‘Hillsborough Law’ report
3 March 2025
The Joint Committee on Human Rights has published the Government’s response to its report into proposals for a ‘Hillsborough law’.
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Joint Committee on Human Rights
The report, published in May last year, called for improvements in how the state responds to major tragedies. It urged that stronger measures be put in place to prevent a repeat of the decades of failure to uncover and acknowledge the truth of what happened at Hillsborough.
The committee supported proposals for a legal ‘duty of candour’ for all public bodies to overcome institutional defensiveness in reaction to public inquiries and inquests. It also called for greater support for victims and families, in particular with access to legal support.
In its response, the Government restated its commitment to implement a ‘Hillsborough law’ including a duty of candour on public servants and authorities. It also highlighted its manifesto commitment to provide legal aid at inquests to victims of disasters or state-related deaths.
Chair's comments
Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Lord David Alton said:
“It has been a national disgrace that the families of those lost in the Hillsborough tragedy had to wait so long and face so many obstacles in establishing the truth of what happened. Justice delayed has been justice denied and this has been compounded by a lack of progress in ensuring that similar barriers aren’t also faced in the future by the victims and survivors of other tragedies that will inevitably occur.
“While I am pleased that the Government has pledged to address these issues, we await publication of their proposals to see if the detail matches up to what is required.”
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