UK Government Delays Vote on Hillsborough Law Amid Spy Exemption Debate

Debate Over Hillsborough Law and National Security

By Alistair Smout

Background of the Hillsborough Law

LONDON, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The British government has cancelled a vote on a proposed "Hillsborough Law" aimed at ensuring transparency from public officials after campaigners raised concerns that intelligence officers may be shielded from scrutiny under the proposals.

Concerns Over Intelligence Agency Exemptions

The bill is named after the Hillsborough soccer stadium in Sheffield where there was a deadly crush in 1989, which police incorrectly blamed on fans before later inquests and an inquiry found instead that the police themselves were to blame.

Government's Response and Future Steps

The proposed law imposes a duty on public authorities and public officials to act with "candour, transparency and frankness" and requires them to act accordingly when complying with inquiries and investigations.

But the government had planned an amendment to allow intelligence officers to be exempted from this duty if their bosses deemed there was a national security risk.

BALANCE MUST BE RIGHT, SAYS PM

Campaign groups and some Labour lawmakers and mayors raised concerns that this would give an overly broad opt-out for security services and undermine the spirit of the bill.

The security services had been criticised for failing to stop a suicide attack at a pop concert in Manchester that killed 22 people in 2017.

After the furore, the government cancelled a final debate and vote on the bill in the lower House of Commons, which had been scheduled for Monday. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he wanted to get the bill right for families that had been let down without jeopardising national security.

"What we're now trying to do is just make sure we get the balance right when it comes to the application of (duty of candour) to the security and intelligence agencies," he told reporters at a press conference, adding his focus was on the national interest "to keep this country safe and secure."

A government spokesperson said that under the bill, the intelligence agencies would be more scrutinised than ever before.

In one of the world's worst stadium disasters, 97 Liverpool fans died after a crush in an overcrowded, fenced-in enclosure at an FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham.

A report in December found that 12 mostly senior former police officers would have had cases to answer for gross misconduct. No officer has been convicted in criminal cases for their handling of the disaster.

Campaign group Hillsborough Law Now said that the government and surviving families agreed any amendment should not risk national security.

"This pause, whilst frustrating, gives the chance for government to listen further and agree an amendment to prevent cover-ups by the intelligence services without changing existing national security safeguards," it said on X.

(Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Andrew Heavens)