Prime Minister Andy Burnham has praised the "extraordinary courage" of the Hillsborough families, stating their decades-long fight for justice has changed the country for the better. Writing exclusively for the Liverpool ECHO, Burnham marked the return of the Hillsborough Law to Parliament, nearly 37 years after the disaster that claimed 97 lives.
"Today, the Hillsborough Law returns to Parliament," Burnham wrote. "After nearly four decades of fighting for justice the families, survivors and campaigners are one step closer to securing the accountability they should never have had to fight so hard to achieve." He added that the country is "one step closer to ending the culture of cover-up and replacing it with one built on honesty, accountability and respect for ordinary people."
A Legacy Beyond Hillsborough
Burnham, who was 19 and watching an FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park when the disaster unfolded, reflected on the personal impact of the tragedy. "Growing up between Liverpool and Manchester, what happened that day stayed with all of us. It became part of who we were," he wrote. He credited a pivotal moment in 2009, when he stood on the Kop at Anfield and heard the crowd chant "Justice," as the catalyst for his political action.
"That moment changed me. It forced me to confront uncomfortable questions about how power operates in our country, and why an entire city could spend twenty years telling the truth only to be ignored," Burnham said. The Hillsborough Independent Panel, the release of documents, and the 2016 verdict that the 97 were unlawfully killed followed. "The following morning, this paper's front page captured what so many felt: At the end of a storm, there's a golden sky."
Broader Implications for Justice
Burnham stressed that the Hillsborough Law is about more than one tragedy. He drew parallels with the infected blood scandal, nuclear test veterans, Grenfell, and the Post Office scandal, noting a common pattern of institutions protecting themselves. He quoted Bishop James Jones, who described "the patronising disposition of unaccountable power."
"The Hillsborough Law is our chance to begin dismantling that culture once and for all," Burnham wrote. He argued that the lesson extends beyond a duty of candour, asking: "What kind of country do we want to be? One where power is concentrated in distant institutions, or one where it is shared more fairly with the people and places those institutions are meant to serve?"
A Promise Fulfilled
Burnham recalled introducing the first Hillsborough Law almost ten years ago, supported by Keir Starmer, as one of his final acts in Parliament. He described its return as "another major step towards ensuring no family has to endure what the Hillsborough families have endured."
"It will be a deeply moving moment to return to Parliament today as the Prime Minister honours the promise made to the Hillsborough families," Burnham said. "Throughout it all, the families have led from the front. They always have, and they always will. Today belongs to them." He concluded: "I hope they know that their courage has changed this country for the better, and that future generations will be protected because they never stopped believing that justice would come."
