Long-awaited Hillsborough Law finally introduced to Parliament
Leigh Day human rights partner Leanne Devine discusses the announcement today, 16 September 2025, that the Government is introducing a Bill to Parliament which the Hillsborough families and other campaign groups consider fit to be called ‘a Hillsborough Law’.
Posted on 16 September 2025
From 2013 to 2016, I was a senior member of the legal team acting for 22 bereaved families in the fresh Hillsborough Inquests. I have since continued to support the Hillsborough Law Now campaign in their pursuit for a Hillsborough Law. I am a Human Rights partner in Leigh Day’s Liverpool office representing bereaved families in inquests.
What is the Hillsborough law?
Hillsborough Law is a proposed piece of UK legislation designed to prevent institutional cover-ups in the aftermath of public tragedies.
It was born out of the Hillsborough Families’ decades-long fight for justice following the Hillsborough disaster of 1989 to change the law to prevent state cover-ups of the type they suffered, happening to others.
In the immediate aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster, public authorities, including the police, engaged in a campaign of misinformation, deflection, and denial, blaming fans for the tragedy.
The proposed law - formally known as the Public Office (Accountability) Bill - seeks to enshrine a statutory duty of candour, meaning public officials and bodies would be legally required to tell the truth and fully cooperate with investigations and inquiries. It includes provisions for criminal liability in cases where officials obstruct justice or mislead inquiries. It also aims to ensure bereaved families have access to publicly funded legal representation in inquests where the state is involved.
Who has been fighting for the law?
The campaign for the Hillsborough Law has been led by the families of the victims, survivors of the disaster, and a coalition of campaigners and legal experts. Central to this movement is the Hillsborough Law Now campaign.
The campaign is supported by organisations like INQUEST, and politicians including Andy Burnham, who introduced the original draft bill in 2017, and Ian Byrne MP, a Hillsborough survivor. Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged to introduce the law following Labour’s victory in the 2024 General Election.
What is the history of the Hillsborough Law?
The history of the Hillsborough Law is rooted in the long and painful journey for justice that began in 1989. After the disaster, initial inquiries failed to hold authorities accountable, and the first inquests returned verdicts of accidental death. It wasn’t until the 20th anniversary of the disaster in 2009, that the Prime Minister agreed to disclose papers relating to the disaster for scrutiny and review by the Hillsborough Independent Panel (“HIP”). In 2012, the Panel produced the HIP report exposing the scale of the cover-up. This led to fresh inquests in 2016, which concluded that the victims had been unlawfully killed and that fans bore no responsibility. In response, campaigners began pushing for systemic reform, culminating in the drafting of the Hillsborough Law.
Andy Burnham introduced the bill in Parliament in 2017, but progress stalled. The campaign regained momentum in 2021 with the launch of Hillsborough Law Now.
How will the Hillsborough Law help bereaved families in the future?
There are 3 pillars to the bill:
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A duty of candour is proposed in relation to all state bodies to tell the truth with provision to ensure compliance and enforcement provisions with criminal offences for intentional or reckless misleading of the public. The Bill proposes a new criminal offence of misleading the public. The common law offence of misfeasance in public office is to be replaced by two statutory offences - ‘breach of duty to prevent death or serious injury’ and ‘seriously improper acts.’
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Within statutory inquiries, inquests and non-statutory inquiries there will be a duty on state authorities to proactively inform investigations of relevant inform, and prevents authorities, corporations or officials from holding out and waiting to see if wrongdoing or failures have been identified. There is discretion to extend this provision to other investigations. There is a duty within inquiries and a power within inquests for authorities to set out Position Statements at the beginning of the proceedings.
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Extended non means tested funding for legal representation for families at all inquests where the state is legally represented. This step is aimed to address an inequality of arms where state authorities have been able to avoid scrutiny because they have teams of lawyers whilst the bereaved have none. The Bill also requires public authorities to be proportionate in terms of instructing lawyers and have regard to the bereaved in doing so.
The Bill will seek to drive forward a culture change within state authorities with a shift to approaching investigations with candour, to learn lessons and prevent future deaths rather than cover up mistakes and failures.
Whilst the proposed Hillsborough Law does not cap the fees for those instructed to represent the state to the same level of those representing the bereaved, at this stage removing the hurdle for families in obtaining funding to seek legal representation at the inquest of their loved one is a significant step forward to ensuring that bereaved families can access justice.
What are the next steps for Hillsborough Law?
The Bill will be presented to Parliament on Tuesday 16 September 2025 and will pass through the legislative process. The Hillsborough Law Now campaigners are committed to continuing their fight to ensure the provisions set out within the Bill remain intact and ensure that Hillsborough Law is implemented as proposed without any further delay.
Leanne Devine
Leanne is a partner in the human rights department
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