See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy GREG HEFFER, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT Published: 12:36 BST, 13 July 2026 | Updated: 13:25 BST, 13 July 2026
Labour's long-delayed 'Hillsborough Law' is finally set to be passed by MPs this week after ministers resolved a row over how it impacts the intelligence services.Keir Starmer is set to use his final days in office to push the legislation - officially known as the Public Office (Accountability) Bill - through the House of Commons.It will create a legally-enforceable duty of candour, which compels public officials and authorities to act transparently when investigations and inquiries take place.It takes its name from the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 when 97 Liverpool fans were killed at the football stadium in Sheffield in a crush during an FA Cup semi-final.After the disaster, key public servants, including the police, were found to have not told the truth about the decisions taken leading up to the fatal crush at the Leppings Lane end of the ground.Sir Keir once promised to introduce the Hillsborough Law before the 36th anniversary of the disaster in 2025, but missed his own deadline.The legislation was then delayed further amid concerns from the security services about how it could impact spies.But the Government has now reached a point where it believes employees and ex-employees of the intelligence services can be covered by a duty of candour without compromising national security. Keir Starmer pictured with Hillsborough campaigner Margaret Aspinall at Labour's conference in Liverpool last yearAmendments to the Bill will create a process where intelligence employees send information under the duty of candour to the head of their organisation, who would then be responsible for passing it on to public investigators.A Government source said: 'This is an overwhelming victory after months of hard work to find a solution that ensures we have a duty of candour that applies to the intelligence services without compromising national security.'The Hillsborough Law will fundamentally change the balance of power so the state can never hide from the people it is supposed to serve, and so victims can always get justice.'Asked on Monday if Sir Keir was rushing through the Hillsborough Law in a bid to secure a 'legacy' during his final few days in No10, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said Sir Keir had been committed to the legislation 'from the outset'.The Hillsborough Law Now campaign, which has been campaigning for the law change, welcomed the news that the Bill will return to the Commons, and described it as 'a major step towards delivering the landmark changes that bereaved families and survivors have fought for over decades to prevent state cover-ups'.The campaign added: 'The Government has now conceded that there will be no carve-outs, no exemptions for security services or anyone else, breaking the impasse that has persisted since January.'This is an important milestone, not just for Hillsborough families, but for every family who has experienced a cover-up and lack of accountability from public authorities. 'We are a big step closer to ensuring that no family has to again fight for the truth for decades.'Once the Bill completes its Commons stages this week, the journey continues in the House of Lords.'We will keep working with peers, parliamentarians and families to ensure this legislation reaches the statute book and delivers the change that has been promised for so long.'Andy Burnham, who is set to replace Sir Keir in Downing Street next week, said the Bill's return to the Commons will be a 'special moment to be in the House on Tuesday as the PM delivers on his promise to the families'.The premier-in-waiting added: 'We owe the Hillsborough families and all the campaigners our profound thanks for standing firm for what is right and never giving in.'Their determination in the face of decades of denial will permanently shift the balance of power in this country in favour of ordinary people and that is a huge thing.'The rebalancing of power must not end there. We must never forget that an entire English city correctly cried injustice for 20 years but was blanked by the powers-that-be.'It tells us that not all people and places in this country have been treated as equals. We will not rest until they are and that is why we will now redistribute power to create a more equal Britain.'
