Hillsborough files released: Cameron apology over 'double injustice'

 

David Cameron has said he is profoundly sorry for the "double injustice" of the Hillsborough football disaster.

 

Speaking after an independent report into previously unseen documents about the tragedy, the prime minister said police had failed to do enough and had also tried to blame Liverpool fans.

 

Ninety-six fans died after a crush at Sheffield Wednesday's ground in 1989.

 

Campaigner Trevor Hicks said a faster response from the emergency services could have saved lives.

 

Mr Hicks, who lost two daughters at Hillsborough and is a member of the family support group, said it would now press for criminal action against those involved in the disaster.

 

He said: "We feel a breakthrough has been made. The truth is out today and the justice starts tomorrow."

 

The report has been compiled by the Hillsborough Independent Panel which has scrutinised more than 450,000 pages of documents for the past 18 months. The victims' families have always challenged the original inquest, which concluded all the victims were dead or brain dead 15 minutes after the game had kicked off at 15:00.

 

By analysing post-mortem test results, the panel found 28 of the 96 victims had no "obstruction of blood circulation" and there was "separate evidence that, in 31, the heart and lungs had continued to function after the crush".

 

Dr Bill Kirkup, panel member and associate chief medical officer in the Department of Health, said: "In total, 41 people therefore had potential to survive after the period of 3:15. What I can't say is how many of those could have been saved.

 

"But I can say is that the potential is of that order of magnitude."

 

Relatives of the Liverpool supporters who died at Hillsborough were handed the report at Liverpool Anglican Cathedral on Wednesday morning.

 

Margaret Aspinall, chairwoman of the Hillsborough Families Support Group, said what the families had gone through was an "absolute disgrace".

 

She said: "They were the liars and we were the truthful ones. "It doesn't make us feel better, because we will always be the losers at Hillsborough."

 

The Hillsborough Justice Campaign has also welcomed the prime minister's apology.

 

The report comes after 23 years of campaigning from Liverpool fans and relatives of the victims to find out exactly what happened on the day of the disaster, which saw the biggest loss of life at any UK sporting event.

 

Kelvin MacKenzie, editor of the Sun newspaper when it ran a story blaming fans, offered "profuse apologies".

 

He wrote the headline The Truth on the controversial front page report, published in the days following the disaster, which alleged fans had picked pockets of victims, urinated on police and beat up officers trying to save lives.

 

In a statement he said: "I published in good faith and I am sorry that it was so wrong."

 

But Mr Hicks rejected his apology as "too little, too late".

 

Liverpool FC chairman Tom Werner said: "The world has heard the real truth about what happened at Hillsborough."

 

The report found of 164 police statements identified for "substantive amendment", 116 were "amended to remove or alter comments unfavourable to South Yorkshire Police".

 

Mr Cameron told the House of Commons the panel found the safety of the crowds at Hillsborough had been "compromised at every level".

 

He said there were three main areas highlighted in the report - failures by the authorities in protecting those at the ground, an attempt to blame the fans and doubt cast on the original coroner's inquest.

 

Mr Cameron said the independent panel's review found:

 

• New evidence about how the authorities failed, including documents which show a delay from the emergency services when people were being crushed
  
• Shortcomings in the response by the ambulance service and other emergency services in addition to failings by police
  
• Rescue attempts were held back by failures of leadership and co-ordination
  
• Victims' families were correct in their belief that some of the authorities attempted to create a "completely unjust" account of events that sought to blame the fans
  
• "Despicable untruths" about the behaviour of fans were part of police efforts "to develop and publicise a version of events that focused on allegations of drunkenness, ticketlessness and violence"
  
• Police officers carried out police national computer checks on those who had died in an attempt "to impugn the reputations of the deceased"
  
• No evidence of any government trying to conceal the truth
  

 

Mr Cameron added "deficiencies" at the ground were well known and it failed to meet minimum safety standards. He apologised for the double injustice, which was both in the "failure of the state to protect their loved ones and the indefensible wait to get to the truth", and in the efforts to denigrate the deceased and suggest that they were "somehow at fault for their own deaths".

 

He said details of the report were "deeply distressing" and it showed the Liverpool fans "were not the cause of the disaster".

 

South Yorkshire Police Chief Constable David Crompton said he wanted to offer his "profound apologies" for the Hillsborough disaster.

 

He said: "I'm absolutely shocked.

 

"If you put yourself in the position of the Hillsborough families, 96 didn't come home and in the immediate aftermath, when police lost control, lies were told about how that happened and then, later in the day, you had to identify your loved one in a makeshift mortuary.

 

"That adds up to about the worst possible set of circumstances anyone could imagine."

 

The report showed police and emergency services made "strenuous attempts" to deflect the blame for the disaster on to fans.

 

The panel said it found evidence the police's submissions to the original inquiry led by Lord Chief Justice Taylor "emphasised exceptional, aggressive and un-anticipated crowd behaviour".

 

It said the first inquiry also emphasised "large numbers of ticketless, drunk and obstinate fans involved in concerted action, even 'conspiracy', to enter the stadium".

 

Mr Cameron said Attorney General Dominic Grieve would review the report as quickly as possible in order to decide whether to apply to the High Court to order a new inquest.

 

Liverpool Walton Labour MP Steve Rotheram said it was a "momentous day for Liverpool". He said: "Finally, we have the undeniable truth. The truth that many innocent people could and should have been saved.

 

"A truth that unequivocally confirms that Liverpool fans were not the cause of the disaster and that drink was not a significant factor."

 

Sheffield Wednesday issued an apology on Wednesday to all the families whose relatives were involved.

 

The club said on its website: "Throughout the compilation stage, the club has worked closely with the panel and the other donating organisations to ensure that, in line with the ethos of maximum disclosure, we have been totally transparent.

 

"The club would like to offer our sincere condolences and an apology to all the families who have suffered as a consequence of the tragic events of 15 April 1989."

 

A number of the victims' families have been campaigning for the Hillsborough documents to be released for more than 20 years. Cabinet papers are not usually published in the UK until 30 years after they have been written but MPs agreed to their full, uncensored disclosure last year.

 

Approval came after 140,000 people signed a government e-petition, set up by Liverpool fan Brian Irvine, to trigger a House of Commons debate on the issue.

 

The panel, chaired by Bishop of Liverpool the Right Reverend James Jones, has now analysed more than 450,000 pages of documents relating to the disaster from more than 80 organisations.

 

Ninety-five fans were crushed to death and hundreds more injured on the overcrowded terraces of the Hillsborough stadium, which was hosting an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

 

The 96th victim, Tony Bland, was left in a coma after the disaster and died in 1993.

 

An independent inquiry led by Lord Chief Justice Taylor found the main cause of the disaster was a failure in crowd control by South Yorkshire Police.

 

But the victims' families wanted to know to exactly what caused the tragedy and what happened in the aftermath.

 

The apology from Mr Cameron was welcomed by Sheila Coleman of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign. She said: "With the clear evidence that fans could have been saved - and the evidence is there - he needs to give all of those 96 victims their right under law, the right to a fair hearing.

 

"It needs a full inquiry into how they died."

 

Speaking after the disclosure of the documents, the bishop said: "We are not an inquiry. People have not appeared before us, people have not been questioned, people have not had legal representation.

 

"Our job has simply been to oversee the maximum possible disclosure of all the documents and to write a report which adds to public understanding and therefore our terms of reference don't actually allow us to make any recommendation.

 

"The documents speak for themselves."

 

Anne Williams, the mother of Hillsborough victim Kevin Williams, has called for the government to open a new inquest under section 13 of the Coroner's Act.

 

She claims Kevin was still alive at 16:00 on the day of the disaster and did not die from traumatic asphyxia.

 

Mrs Williams started an online petition on the government e-petition website which was signed by more than 100,000 people.

 

A statement on the e-petition website said the attorney general had agreed he would look at the applications made to his predecessor Baroness Scotland before he determined whether the evidence supports a new inquest.

 

People in Liverpool were asked to observe a two-minute silence as a mark of respect to the 96 who died.

 

During the silence - held at 15:06 BST to mark the time the game was stopped - the bells at Liverpool Town Hall Municipal Buildings on Dale Street and Liverpool Parish Church rang out 96 times.

 

A vigil to mark the release of the papers will take place at St George's Plateau near to Liverpool Lime Street station at 18:00.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-19543964

The Hillsborough Independent Panel has examined more than 400,000 documents

 

Hillsborough report: Key findings

 

The Hillsborough disaster occurred when 96 Liverpool fans died after they were crushed within Sheffield Wednesday's stadium during the 1989 FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest.

 

The fans who died had been in two pens of the Leppings Lane terrace. Each pen was separated by fences, including an overhanging barrier designed to prevent pitch invasions. Each pen had a small locked gate that opened onto the pitch.

 

The report, compiled by the Hillsborough Independent Panel, said that despite obvious signs of distress, it was a while before the police fully reacted and launched attempts to rescue those who were being crushed.

 

CROWD SAFETY

 

"It is evident… that the safety of the crowd admitted to the terrace was compromised at every level: access to the turnstiles from the public highway; the condition and adequacy of the turnstiles; the management of the crowd by South Yorkshire Police (SYP) and the Sheffield Wednesday FC (SWFC) stewards; alterations to the terrace, particularly the construction of pens; the condition and placement of crush barriers; access to the central pens via a tunnel descending at a 1 in 6 gradient; emergency egress from the pens via small gates in the perimeter fence; and lack of precise monitoring of crowd capacity within the pens.

 

"These deficiencies were well known and further overcrowding problems at the turnstiles in 1987 and on the terrace in 1988 were additional indications of the inherent dangers to crowd safety. The risks were known and the crush in 1989 was foreseeable."

 

OPERATIONAL FAILINGS

 

"The flaws in responding to the emerging crisis on the day were rooted in institutional tension within and between organisations.

 

"This was reflected in: a policing and stewarding mindset predominantly concerned with crowd disorder; the failure to realise the consequences of opening exit gates to relieve congestion at the turnstiles; the failure to manage the crowd's entry and allocation between the pens; the failure to anticipate the consequences within the central pens of not sealing the tunnel; the delay in realising that the crisis in the central pens was a consequence of overcrowding rather than crowd disorder.

 

"The SYP decision to replace the experienced match commander… just weeks before an FA Cup semi-final, has been previously criticised. None of the documents disclosed to the panel indicated the rationale behind this decision."

 

CUSTOMS AND PRACTICES

 

"Throughout the 1980s there was considerable ambiguity about South Yorkshire Police's and Sheffield Wednesday FC's crowd management responsibilities within the stadium. The management of the crowd was viewed exclusively through a lens of potential crowd disorder, and this ambiguity was not resolved despite problems at previous semi-finals. SWFC and SYP were unprepared for the disaster that unfolded on the terraces on 15 April 1989."

 

THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE

 

"Not only was there delay in recognising that there were mass casualties, the major incident plan was not correctly activated and only limited parts were then put into effect. As a result, rescue and recovery efforts were affected by lack of leadership, co-ordination, prioritisation of casualties and equipment.

 

"The emergency response to the Hillsborough disaster has not previously been fully examined, because of the assumption that the outcome for those who died was irretrievably fixed long before they could have been helped.

 

"It is not possible to establish whether a more effective emergency response would have saved the life of any one individual who died. Given the evidence disclosed to the panel of more prolonged survival of some people with partial asphyxiation, however, a swifter, more appropriate, better-focused and properly equipped response had the potential to save more lives."

 

THE MEDICAL EVIDENCE

 

"During the inquest, the coroner ruled that there should be a cut-off of 3.15pm on the day in relation to medical evidence, arguing that the fate of all those who died after this point had already been determined by earlier events.

 

"The panel's access to all of the relevant records has confirmed that the notion of a single, unvarying and rapid pattern of death in all cases is unsustainable. Some of those who died did so after a significant period of unconsciousness during which they might have been able to be resuscitated, or conversely may have succumbed to a new event such as inappropriate positioning.

 

"It is not possible to establish with certainty that any one individual would or could have survived under different circumstances. It is clear, however, that some people who were partially asphyxiated survived, while others did not. It is highly likely that what happened to these individuals after 3.15pm was significant in determining that outcome. On the basis of this disclosed evidence, it cannot be concluded that life or death was inevitably determined by events prior to 3.15pm, or that no new fatal event could have occurred after that time."

 

DEFLECTION OF BLAME

 

"It is evident from the disclosed documents that from the outset SYP sought to establish a case emphasising exceptional levels of drunkenness and aggression among Liverpool fans, alleging that many arrived at the stadium late, without tickets and determined to force entry.

 

"Eight years after the disaster it was revealed publicly for the first time that statements made by SYP officers were initially handwritten as 'recollections', then subjected to a process of 'review and alteration' involving SYP solicitors and a team of SYP officers.

 

"Some 116 of the 164 statements identified for substantive amendment were amended to remove or alter comments unfavourable to SYP."

 

THE HEADLINES

 

The panel also looked at the allegations of blame levelled against Liverpool fans in some newspapers, including The Sun.

 

"The documents disclosed to the panel show that the origin of these serious allegations was a local Sheffield press agency informed by several SYP officers, an SYP Police Federation spokesperson and a local MP.

 

"They also demonstrate how the SYP Police Federation, supported informally by the SYP chief constable, sought to develop and publicise a version of events that focused on several police officers' allegations of drunkenness, ticketlessness and violence among a large number of Liverpool fans. This extended beyond the media to Parliament.

 

"Yet, from the mass of documents, television and CCTV coverage disclosed to the panel there is no evidence to support these allegations other than a few isolated examples of aggressive or verbally abusive behaviour clearly reflecting frustration and desperation."

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-19577033

Thank goodness.

 

 

JFT96

Finally JFT96

Hillsborough police crime probe

 

The police watchdog and director of public prosecutions are to launch investigations into possible crimes committed in the wake of the Hillsborough disaster, it has been announced.

 

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said a large number of serving and former officers would be investigated over what happened on the day of the tragedy in 1989, and during the alleged cover-up afterwards.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19922092

Hillsborough inquest verdicts quashed by High Court

 

Ninety-six Liverpool fans lost their lives as a result of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989

 

Hillsborough inquest verdicts quashed by High Court

 

The High Court has quashed the original inquest verdicts returned on 96 Liverpool football fans who died as a result of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster.

 

The Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge ordered new inquests after Attorney General Dominic Grieve's application.

 

Outside court, Trevor Hicks ,of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, said it was "a huge step for the families".

 

The home secretary has also announced a new police inquiry into the disaster.

 

Theresa May said the new inquiry would re-examine what happened on 15 April 1989.

 

Mr Grieve said he applied to the High Court as a result of the Hillsborough Panel's report, published on 12 September, which said 41 of those who died might have been saved. He added Dr Bill Kirkup, the panel's medical member and a former associate chief medical officer at the Department of Health, had explained 58 of the dead "definitely" or "probably" had the capacity to survive beyond the 15:15 cut-off time.

 

New evidence undermined the coroner's summing-up, he said, adding later on BBC Radio 4's PM programme, that the report revealed "serious flaws" in the inquest.

 

He cited concerns about the timing of the fans' deaths, the role of the police and the false allegations that alcohol had played a material part in the tragedy, adding: "It [alcohol] was also used to blacken the reputation of the fans and potentially the victims, in a way that was very unfortunate, completely unacceptable and unfair."

 

Lord Judge said there was "deliberate misinformation surrounding the disaster".

 

"There has been a profound and palpable belief that justice had not been done [and] it is clear there are sound grounds for this application," he said.

 

He added the court wanted to "record our admiration and respect [to the families] for their determined search for the truth about the disaster and why and how it had occurred, which - despite disappointments and setbacks - has continued for nearly quarter of a century."

 

Mr Hicks, who lost two daughters in the disaster, said the families "couldn't have written it better".

 

"It's clear now justice is on its way - I think a lot of us are going to have a much happier Christmas," he said.

 

Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said he would do everything to get "new inquests established quickly".

 

"I have received a request from the Doncaster and Bradford Coroners for a judge to be appointed to conduct these inquests and I am today asking the Lord Chief Justice to make a recommendation to me on suitable candidates as soon as possible," he added.

 

Mrs May said former Durham Chief Constable Jon Stoddart would lead the new inquiry, focussing specifically on the Liverpool fans' deaths as a result of what happened at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest.

 

Ninety-five fans died after they were crushed within two pens at the Leppings Lane terrace of Sheffield Wednesday's stadium, while the 96th died three years later after a Law Lords ruling stopping his tube feeding.

 

Mr Stoddart can recruit his own team but not any officers or former officers with any prior connection to the disaster or from West Midlands, South Yorkshire or Merseyside police forces.

 

He said his first priority was to meet with "as many of the families as possible" and to "establish a working open relationship with them".

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-20772416

R.I.P

 

JFT96