UK Government Withdraws “Spy Clause” from Hillsborough Law After Backlash

In a significant victory for Hillsborough families and accountability campaigners, the UK government has pulled a controversial amendment to the proposed Hillsborough Law — formally the **Public Office (Accountability) Bill — that would have allowed intelligence agencies to partially opt out of a mandatory duty of candour. 

The legislation, shaped by decades of campaigning by the families of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster — one of Britain’s deadliest public tragedies — is intended to legally compel public officials and authorities to be truthful, transparent and frank in investigations and public inquiries into disasters and state failures. 

What Was the Controversial Amendment?

The government had tabled an amendment that would bring the security services — such as MI5 and MI6 — within the scope of the duty of candour only if disclosure was approved by the head of their service. Critics warned this could give intelligence chiefs broad discretion to withhold information, enabling the very evasions the law is meant to prevent. 

Campaign groups, bereaved families, Labour MPs and regional leaders — including the mayors of Liverpool and Manchester — argued that this “spy carve-out” would undermine the bill’s purpose and weaken accountability after tragedies like Hillsborough, where initial official narratives covered up systemic failure. 

Government U-Turn and Next Steps

Faced with mounting public and parliamentary pressure, ministers withdrew the amendment and removed the debate on Monday’s parliamentary agenda. The government says it will now work with campaigners and bereaved families to craft an alternative approach when the bill reaches the House of Lords. 

A government spokesperson said the aim remains to strengthen transparency and prevent future cover-ups, while safeguarding national security where appropriate. Meanwhile, the campaign group Hillsborough Law Now welcomed the withdrawal and said it would engage further to ensure the law fully applies to the security services without loopholes. 

Why This Matters

The Hillsborough Law was prompted by decades of frustration over official cover-ups and misinformation after the 1989 disaster, in which 97 Liverpool fans lost their lives in a stadium crush and police attempts to shift blame deepened public mistrust. The law’s purpose is to codify a legal duty for public officials to tell the truth, helping ensure that future tragedies are investigated openly and honestly. 

The removal of the spy exemption is viewed by campaigners as an affirmation that no public body should be able to evade accountability, particularly when families and communities seek justice and truth.