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Starmer waters down proposed Hillsborough law
Readers are likely familiar with the Hillsborough tragedy, which happened at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, 15 April 1989. But for those unaware here is a summary.
The South Yorkshire police force in collaboration with significant elements of the media (most notably media owned by Rupert Murdoch) and the Thatcher government concocted a story of anti-working class slander about the 97 Liverpool fans who died. These innocent people were crushed to death, some as young as ten, as a result of negligence from the police force and an outdated stadium which was designed in the 19th century. The Leppings Lane end of the ground where the crush happened did not hold a valid safety certificate; it had not been updated since 1979.
It took until 2016, 27 years later, for the British legal system to finally admit that these deaths were ‘unlawful’- but not one person who was responsible for it happening was held to account. Not Kelvin MacKenzie, the editor of a so-called ‘newspaper’, which falsely accused surviving fans of stealing from the pockets of the dead. Nor David Duckenfield, who was in charge of South Yorkshire Police and in 2019 somehow was found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter charges.
With this long shadow of injustice, alongside other instances worthy of their own articles (the Grenfell fire disaster a very recent example), the Labour Party included in its manifesto a pledge to implement a ‘Hillsborough law’, which would attempt to prevent it ever happening again. Measures in this proposed law included entrenching a legal right for ‘David vs Goliath’ cases to guarantee money for the ‘Davids’ and establishing a legal power against public servants (police, politicians, media etc) to prosecute them under criminal charges if they lie or impede the legal process.
Where is this legislation? It has been postponed amid controversy that the Starmer government is watering it down. Labour had promised the law by the anniversary on 15 April. Yet another broken promise but not the first time Labour has let down the Hillsborough families. Blair and Brown’s governments cosied up to Murdoch and refused to open an enquiry into the Hillsborough disaster for 12 years. It took Andy Burnham, a cabinet minister at that time, being publicly berated by 40,000 people chanting for justice at the 20th anniversary memorial for any enquiry to come into being. The legislation has allegedly been watered down causing uproar. The families of the victims are frustrated and West Derby Labour MP Ian Byrne (himself a Hillsborough survivor) has publicly expressed dissatisfaction.
Would this law, even in a draft which establishes a legal route to prosecute crimes against innocent working-class people, stop future injustices? The answer is no. For as long as the media is owned by the likes of Murdoch, the police are unaccountable and governments are ruled by those in the pockets of the media and mega-corporations, then how can we have accountability? For as long as we live in a capitalist society, in which money and therefore power is concentrated into the hands of very few, it will always be one rule for them and another for the working class. A Hillsborough law would be a step forward and we should support the victims’ families in demanding it be as strong as possible. But only the socialist transformation of society will rid us of a system which kills 97 football fans and covers it up for 27 years.
Dean Young, Liverpool Socialist Party
Labour’s immigration ‘hygiene’ comments shows whose side they’re on
Labour’s Antonia Bance MP caused a stir recently after a BlueSky post in which she described immigration as a “hygiene factor” for voters. She wrote: “Immigration is for many voters a hygiene factor: if you have demonstrably lost control … then they can’t hear what you have to say on other issues…”
The post was later deleted after people quite rightly pointed out the undertones associating immigration and foreign nationals with “hygiene” is racist. Bance later claimed this a common political idiom in Westminster and she was using the term in reference to Herzberg’s “two-factor theory” where “hygiene factors” refer to basic conditions that must be met before people will engage with broader issues.
Even if we accept that explanation at face value, it doesn’t make things better. What it tells us is that Labour still sees immigration not as a matter of human lives, families, and communities but as a problem to be managed. Immigrants are not people to stand in solidarity with; they’re a political headache to be neutralised. This is what racism looks like when it’s dressed up in the language of political strategy. Human beings are not stats!
The bigger issue here is what this says about Labour’s political strategy. Rather than push back against the hard-right narratives coming from the Tories and Reform UK, Labour is trying to lead on them. The assumption seems to be that if they sound ‘tough’ enough on immigration, they can win over reactionary voters without losing support elsewhere. The opinion polls show this isn’t working; Reform UK is more popular than ever and Labour’s lead has evaporated.
Labour didn’t win a ‘landslide’ victory because the country wanted more of the same. People were crying out for change after over a decade of Tory rule. But time and again, Labour has turned its back on its voters, choosing austerity over workers and the most vulnerable people in society.
On 1 May 2025 we can send a clear message, vote for TUSC or an independent socialist candidate where you can. It’s time for trade unions to back candidates that will fight in our interests and to start building a new mass workers’ party – one that doesn’t accept racism, backs workers and puts people before profit.
Barton Wickets
