Ian Byrne MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 27 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q To Tom and Professor Lewis, under the Bill as drafted, could a public authority have a legitimate reason for not complying with the duty of candour? If yes, can you give me an example? Tom Guest: I partly covered this previously but, to draw that out, no, we have not identified any freestanding offence, either in the statute or in general, that is likely to apply. It is important to underline that clause 3(7) covers the fact that if there is another Act of Parliament or another rule of law that prohibits providing information, the duty of candour does not override that. That is the only exception to the duty of candour that we have identified to draw to your attention.

• 3 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill · Hansard source

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  May I place on record my thanks to the people of Sheffield? On that day, they were magnificent in looking after the Liverpool fans who, as my hon. Friend has said, had no way to phone home. They showed unbelievable human kindness to those fans.

• 3 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend makes a fair point; this is a great start but there is a long way to go yet, and we need to keep our foot to the pedal. The Government recognise the need for a statutory duty of candour to change the culture of cover-ups. Candour is not incompatible with national security. The duty to tell the truth must apply to everyone, including intelligence agencies. Carve-outs for individual officers undermine this Bill and, frankly, have no place in legislation about candour. Accountability would improve the performance of our security services and surely enhance our safety, not lessen it. The Government have been offered a simple amendment to fix this issue in the Bill, and to ensure that accountability, by the lawyers connected to Hillsborough Law Now. I urge hon. Members and the Government to support it. Colleagues, we did not get here without a long, collective effort from so many, and we must continue that same collective effort to ensure that truth, justice and accountability are finally—finally—enshrined in law. The Bill must honour those already wronged by the state, those who fought for justice on their behalf and those who might come after us, but it must also mark the beginning of the end for the suffering of innocent working-class people dragged into the vortex of a state cover-up. My message remains crystal clear: anything less than the Hillsborough law delivered in full would be a further betrayal of the 97, and indeed unworthy of the name Hillsborough. All of us in this place, and those watching, will carry on, relentless, until we get that legacy.

• 3 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill · Hansard source

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  Does the right hon. Member agree that one of the main purposes of the Bill is to stop the cover-ups and save the public purse money?

• 3 Nov 2025 · Public Office (Accountability) Bill · Hansard source

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  This moment carries immense weight for me and for so many others here today—for all those who have lost loved ones, those who carry the scars, and those who survived but never recovered from the trauma of being dragged innocently into a state cover-up. This Bill is not just about legislation, although that is vital; this Bill is about legacy. It is about truth, justice and accountability—three words that the establishment has resisted at every turn, and three words that we have fought to place at the heart of the Bill. Let me speak briefly about why I have fought so hard for those words. Like so many, I was at Hillsborough in 1989. Like so many, I witnessed the cover-up unfold. Ninety-seven innocent men, women and children were unlawfully killed, and countless more lives shattered, but the tragedy was only the beginning. The cover-up that followed was deliberate—a calculated attempt to rewrite history and shift the blame on to the victims. Let us never forget what the chief constable of South Yorkshire police admitted in 2012, after the Hillsborough independent panel: “In the immediate aftermath senior officers sought to change the record of events. Disgraceful lies were told which blamed the Liverpool fans for the disaster. Statements were altered which sought to minimise police blame.” I saw that with my own eyes. I sat beside my dad, who was seriously injured at Hillsborough, in the Liverpool office of Elkan Abrahamson, who is here today—one of the architects of the Bill, along with Pete Weatherby—when he received his revised statement. The anger, dismay, and betrayal that he felt reading the lies written in his name is something that I will never ever forget, and it is why this means so much to me. It took 23 years for South Yorkshire police to admit the scale of its cover-up, yet by 2020—31 years after Hillsborough—no public servant had been convicted, and no police officer disciplined. In fact, Norman Bettison, who was absolutely central to the cover-up, not only escaped sanction but was rewarded with a knighthood for his efforts—a title he disgracefully retains to this day. So yes, we got the truth, but justice? No. That is why we are here today. This Bill must be worthy of the 97 who were unlawfully killed. It must be worthy of all who have suffered at the hands of a state that covers up its failures. I want to thank everyone who has helped us reach this point. There are so many to name; so many are sitting here today, so many will be sitting at home watching this on the TV, and some are no longer with us. I pay tribute to the campaign groups behind Hillsborough Law Now: the Hillsborough families and survivors; Truth About Zane; nuclear test veterans; contaminated blood campaigners; Post Office Horizon scandal victims; Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice; Grenfell United; the Fire Brigades Union; the Manchester Arena families; Primodos campaigners; and of course Inquest. All have faced the same wall of silence, the same institutional defensiveness, the same decades-long fight for truth, and the pain that that brings. That is why the Bill must not be watered down. It must include every strengthening measure promised by Ministers, including a duty of candour that applies to all inquiries including local ones, and parity of funding must be enshrined as a clear principle within it. Time and again, grieving families have faced the full might of the state, armed only with determination, while public bodies deploy teams of lawyers to protect reputations and shield those responsible. The imbalance is grotesque, and absolutely deliberate. Let us be clear: the establishment will try to weaken the Bill. They will say it is too complex, too costly, too disruptive, but what they really mean is that it is too effective, because it threatens their impunity. The scale of state cover-ups should shame this House, but over the years this place has played a key role in their creation and concealment. That can change today, with this Bill. As it passes through Parliament, I and others will examine it line by line to ensure that it remains fit to bear the name Hillsborough. While I thank the Government for getting us here today, I must raise a few issues that need to be addressed in Committee and on Report. The Bill rightly creates both corporate and individual duties, which are so fundamentally important when we look to avoid another Grenfell. Clause 2(5) requires the person in charge of a public body to take “reasonable steps” to ensure compliance, but it does not make the chief officer or executive liable. Without that individual accountability, the deterrent power of command responsibility is lost and the culture of cover-ups that we are trying to end may continue. I urge hon. Members to press the Government to strengthen that provision.

• 20 Oct 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. The right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith) stated that Maccabi Tel Aviv have “played a game in Istanbul where there was no trouble at all.” UEFA moved the game to Hungary after Turkish authorities refused to stage it in Turkey. Hungarian authorities then had it played behind closed doors, hence no trouble.

• 20 Oct 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source

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  First, I pay tribute to the volunteers who serve on the safety advisory groups—a thankless but hugely important task—who will be really worried about today. The safety of football fans has, at times, been at the very bottom of priorities in this place. Will my right hon. Friend reassure me that the safety of supporters is absolutely paramount in the Government’s thinking, rather than the politics around this matter?

• 20 Oct 2025 · Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Away Fans Ban · Hansard source

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  indicated assent .

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I could not agree more with my right hon. Friend. The Prime Minister has the ball in his court. He has made personal commitments to Liverpool, to the Hillsborough families and to survivors of other state-related scandals. He is perhaps the most qualified Prime Minister in history to understand why this matters, but understanding is not enough. We need courage, we need leadership, and we need action. I have met countless campaigners who are formidable, tireless and brave. They have been underestimated by the establishment for far too long, but they will not go away, and neither will I. As somebody who was at Hillsborough, I carry this fight in my bones. I will not rest while injustice persists, not just for those who died at Hillsborough, but for everyone who has been wronged by the state. Unless the state learns from its mistakes, it will repeat them, and lives will continue to be destroyed. The time for delaying is over, and the time for diluting promises is over. We must legislate, we must protect truth, and we must honour those who have died at the hands of the state, and those who have fought for justice on their behalf, not with words, but with law.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I agree 100%. The then chief constable of South Yorkshire police said after the findings of the Hillsborough independent panel in 2012: “In the immediate aftermath senior officers sought to change the record of events. Disgraceful lies were told which blamed the Liverpool fans for the disaster. Statements were altered which sought to minimise police blame.” By that point, 23 years after Hillsborough, the game was up. Even South Yorkshire police had to admit that there had been a cover-up of the true facts on an industrial scale. At the end of the Hillsborough processes in 2020, 31 years had passed. A jury at the inquests had found to the criminal standard of proof, beyond reasonable doubt, that those who died had been unlawfully killed by the gross negligence of the match commander. The police force involved had settled the cover-up cases, having publicly acknowledged that disgraceful lies had been deliberately told by senior officers to shift the blame from the police on to Liverpool supporters. Yet, disgracefully, no public servant or police officer has ever been convicted of any offence or even disciplined. In fact, one of the officers at the very heart of the cover-up, Norman Bettison, not only escaped sanction, but was rewarded. He received a knighthood—a title he disgracefully holds to this day. Truth, but no justice. Would anybody in this place argue that it was right that those responsible for the 97 unlawful deaths of innocent people walked away without any consequences? I would wager not. However, 36 years after the Hillsborough cover-up, nothing has changed. The very establishments and vested interests responsible for this culture are once again looking to maintain the status quo and the ability to continue state cover-ups and deny justice to those wronged. This place, which has been at the heart of this culture and done so much to enable cover-ups, must acknowledge today that the game is up and act with clarity and moral courage to push back against those vested interests. That is why we need a duty of candour, which was built into the proposed Hillsborough law of 2017. Establishing a legal duty of candour on public authorities, public servants and corporations that are responsible for public safety would set out a legal principle that they have to tell the truth. Is it not remarkable that that was necessary and remains so?

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for making that point; she is spot on. Out of sheer desperation at the situation, in July I used a private Member’s Bill, the Public Authority (Accountability) Bill, to reintroduce the original Hillsborough law—the 2017 version. The Government rejected it, so here we are today, without the Hillsborough law, fighting against those same vested interests, and the clock continues to tick while people’s belief in politics and politicians continues to erode. Let me be absolutely crystal clear for the Government: a full duty of candour with criminal sanctions is non-negotiable in any legislation bearing the name of Hillsborough. It is not a technicality; it is a moral imperative, and it is a moral and legal imperative that it sits at the heart of every inquiry, investigation and inquest, local and national—no exceptions. Nothing less will change the culture, because carve-outs become cover-ups, and this must never be allowed to happen again. Simply, if it had been law at the time of Hillsborough, we would not have waited decades for justice. So much pain and suffering could have been avoided, and families could have grieved for those lost instead of fighting the state for truth and justice. The duty of candour is about accountability. It is about preventing cover-ups, and it is about restoring public trust. The second pillar of the Hillsborough law is legal parity, which is equally vital. Time and again, bereaved families have faced the might of the state with no legal support, while public bodies are armed to the teeth with expensive teams of lawyers. Parity of arms is essential to stop false narratives being spread and families feeling like it is them who are on trial. That imbalance is not just unfair; it is grotesque. I pay tribute to Deb Coles and the team at INQUEST for their constant championing of this. Their work was highlighted in “All or Nothing: A report on the Hillsborough Law Family Listening Day”. I urge everybody in this room and beyond to read it, to understand why parity of arms is so fundamental to gaining truth and justice. If the Government resist a full duty of candour without exception, what does that say? Do they believe public officials should be allowed to lie with impunity? Do they believe families should continue to be denied justice? Opposition to this legislation is not about practicality. It highlights the power of vested interests. It is about protecting the status quo—a status quo that has caused untold harm to so many. The ball is now in the Government’s court. More specifically, it is in the Prime Minister’s court.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered duty of candour for public authorities and legal representation for bereaved families. It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mrs Hobhouse. I am here to speak about the urgent need for a statutory duty of candour and the full implementation of the Hillsborough law, and to oppose the forces that want to fight against this change. Historically, the state has taken a defensive position to protect its own interests. From the Peterloo massacre to Bloody Sunday, Hillsborough, the Post Office scandal, Grenfell, the contaminated blood scandal and nuclear test veterans, to name but a few, the list of state cover-ups is long, exhausting and utterly shameful. So many families have been denied truth and justice because of the current system, which enables cover-ups. How and why has a system been left in place that has continually enabled the establishment to evade truth, accountability and justice for those wronged? That is a question that this place and this country should think long and hard about. I was at the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 when 97 innocent women, children and men lost their lives and countless more lives were destroyed. It was not just a tragedy; it was a betrayal—a betrayal compounded over decades by lies, cover-ups and institutional failures.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  Does the shadow Minister reflect on the fact, though, that Bishop Jones’s report was in 2017? He was asked to deliver it by the then Prime Minister, Theresa May. The Conservatives had a long time in government to implement the Hillsborough law. The shadow Minister mentioned some of the things they did, but it was not enough. I have been here since 2019, and I have continuously asked Minister after Minister to deliver the Hillsborough law, but the fact is, you failed us.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for those valid points. The third aspect of the Hillsborough law would make new offences of wilfully failing to discharge the duty to fully assist inquiries, or intentionally or recklessly misleading the public or media. That would be an absolute game changer and would transform the country for the better. That leads me to the current situation. In the 2024 King’s Speech, the Government pledged to bring forward legislation to enshrine a duty of candour for public servants. They called it the Hillsborough law, and it was what was promised in the manifesto that I, and many Members present, proudly stood on in the 2024 general election. We thought it was the same legislation as the Hillsborough law that was first brought to Parliament by Andy Burnham in 2017 and written by Pete Weatherby KC and Elkan Abrahamson, two prominent lawyers who have represented Hillsborough families for decades and continue to work with the Hillsborough law campaign. The Government promised that they would ensure that public officials tell the truth and proactively co-operate with investigations. They also promised parity of legal representation for bereaved families. I, as lead for the Hillsborough law campaign in Parliament, and all the campaigners connected with it over the years, were delighted by that commitment, which the Government promised to deliver by the 36th anniversary of Hillsborough on 15 April this year.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is spot on. The second aspect of the Hillsborough law would put that new legal principle of truth into practical use by requiring public authorities, public servants and corporations proactively to assist investigations, inquests and inquiries, and providing a legal toolkit to help families and others to make them comply.

• 3 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour for Public Authorities and Legal Representation for Bereaved Families · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that powerful point—I agree 100%. The Government’s promise to deliver that commitment by the 36th anniversary of Hillsborough was broken. Instead, they offered a watered-down version of the legislation, stripped of its moral force and legal teeth. Lawyers who drafted the original Bill refused to endorse it, negotiations stalled, and once again the families were let down. It felt a continuation of the betrayal by the state. Although the Paymaster General told me in this place in July that the Government remain “fully committed” to introducing a Hillsborough law, we still have no clarity on when or how those provisions will be enacted. There have been plenty of warm words, but warm words do not deliver justice—action does.

• 21 Jul 2025 · Infected Blood Inquiry: Additional Report · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement. The infected blood scandal is the worst treatment disaster in NHS history, but as the inquiry’s chair said: “This disaster was not an accident”. Institutional reputation was put above truth and ordinary people paid the price. It is far from alone—there is Horizon, nuclear test veterans, Grenfell and Hillsborough. A Hillsborough law would end the culture of cover-up, which is why victims and families, including those from the infected blood scandal, fully support it. The Prime Minister promised that one of his first acts would be to introduce that legislation, but one year on we are still waiting. Does the Minister recognise the importance of fulfilling that pledge before Labour returns to Liverpool for the party conference in September?

• 10 Jul 2025 · Public Bodies: Duty of Candour · Hansard source

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  9. If he will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce a legal duty of candour on public bodies.

• 10 Jul 2025 · Public Bodies: Duty of Candour · Hansard source

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  There is a long list of MPs, Ministers and Prime Ministers on both sides of the House who enabled the establishment cover-up at Hillsborough, which denied justice to the victims and survivors. There have been only a few honourable exceptions of politicians who did the right thing. The establishment is a powerful force, and it takes real courage to confront its deep-rooted fear of accountability. Given that the Government have so far failed to deliver their promise to enact the Hillsborough law, does the Minister recognise that this is a continuation of the betrayal of the Hillsborough families, survivors and all those affected by state cover-ups? If he does recognise that, will he support the Second Reading of the Hillsborough law that I have tabled tomorrow —and if not, why not?

• 8 Jul 2025 · Post Office Horizon Inquiry: Volume 1 · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for his statement and for his powerful words, but the publication of the report confirms the heartbreaking scale of the human impact of this shocking miscarriage of justice. The concealment and cover-up of the Horizon scandal follows a familiar pattern. Institutions deceive and distort because they put their reputation before truth and justice, as we have seen before in the infected blood scandal, the nuclear test veterans scandal and, of course, the Hillsborough disaster, among many others. The law that bears that disaster’s name would end the culture of cover-ups that we have heard about today. Does the Minister agree that the report shows why the Government must honour their pledge and promise to enact the Hillsborough law in full and end the culture of cover-ups, which does so much damage to the innocent victims and their families, and to the country’s reputation?

• 2 Jul 2025 · Public Authority (Accountability) · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to set a requirement on public institutions, public servants and officials and on those carrying out functions on their behalf to act in the public interest and with candour and frankness; to define the public law duty on them to assist courts, official inquiries and investigations; to enable victims to enforce such duties; to create offences for the breach of certain duties; to provide funding for victims and their relatives in certain proceedings before the courts and at official inquiries and investigations; and for connected purposes. On 15 April 1989, I entered Hillsborough stadium, an innocent 16-year-old full of hope and excitement, to watch my beloved Liverpool football club in the FA cup semi-final. Little did I, or anybody else there that day, know that we were walking into a national disaster that would leave 97 men, women and children dead, hundreds more injured, and countless families devastated for generations. What unfolded that day was not a tragic accident. It was a disaster caused by police failures and compounded by one of the most shameful state cover-ups this country has ever seen. Like so many others, I was just a working-class lad who happened to be there, but like so many others, I was dragged into a decades-long web of establishment denial, distortion and deceit. That day shaped me and the course of my life, and it is the reason I stand here today. We have all witnessed the bravery, determination and anguish of the Hillsborough families and survivors, who are fighting tirelessly for truth and justice in the face of repeated state obstruction. We never sought revenge or asked for special treatment; we just wanted what anyone would want in our shoes—the truth about what happened to our loved ones and a fair chance at justice. Instead, we were met with walls of silence, decades of lies and a legal system stacked against us. I am so honoured that some of those tireless campaigners and giants of justice are in the House today, watching as we fight once again to end the injustices they have endured for more than three decades. Police officers knew who was responsible and where accountability lay, yet lie after lie was told. At inquests and inquiries and in media briefings, supporters were blamed for the death of their fellow fans. Time and again, false narratives were repeated and legitimised by those in power, and we will never, ever forget or forgive the disgraceful headline in The Sun . While the families and survivors scraped together funds for legal representation, those responsible were shielded by some of the finest legal minds in the country, insultingly paid for by the state. I remember vividly my dad, who was seriously injured that day, fundraising in the Breck, our local pub near Anfield, for the Hillsborough Justice Campaign. That grassroots organisation was powered by ordinary people, not the Treasury, and the contrast could not be starker. I am very proud that he is here today. Grieving families fought for justice while the institutions responsible were protected at every turn by a system designed to shield itself. It was not a broken system; it was a system working exactly as it was designed to—a system in which the establishment protected its own, and in which ordinary people, like my dad and thousands of others, were treated as an inconvenience. Through “The Real Truth” legacy project, we teach schoolchildren about Hillsborough and other examples of state injustice, because this history must not be buried; it must be understood. Crucially, it must never be repeated. When I speak to students about the fight for truth, I compare it to somebody who is blindfolded, and who has their hands tied behind their back, having to go toe to toe with Tyson Fury. That is what those families faced, and still face to this day. This is not just about Hillsborough, although the legislation bears its name. For decades, we have seen the same institutional playbook used time and again—the cover-ups, the smears, the hostile briefings, and the dragging out of justice until people simply give up or pass away. We have seen Grenfell, Manchester arena, the Post Office Horizon scandal, infected blood, the “Truth About Zane” campaign, covid-19, nuclear test veterans and so many more. Each time, we see the same weary expression on the faces of the devastated families, and the same exhaustion etched on to the faces of those battling a system designed to protect itself. Each time it happens, a little more faith in this country’s soul is lost. Today we have the power to change that. As the parliamentary lead for the Hillsborough Law Now campaign, I am proud to reintroduce this legislation, the Public Authority (Accountability) Bill. I am proud but deeply disappointed, because this Bill should already be in law. In 2022, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Holborn and St Pancras (Keir Starmer) stood before the people of Liverpool at the Labour party conference and pledged that “one of my first acts as Prime Minister will be to put the Hillsborough Law onto the statute book.” He said the same again as Prime Minister in September 2024, and mentioned not a Hillsborough law, but the Hillsborough law. That pledge filled our hearts with hope, and promised an end to the culture of denial and delay, and the decades of deceit. Make no mistake: this Bill is the Hillsborough law—the one drafted by Pete Weatherby KC and Elkan Abrahamson. It is the one originally introduced by Andy Burnham in 2017 and shaped by the families, for the families. It includes a statutory duty of candour on public authorities, enforceable with criminal sanctions. It levels the playing field so that families are no longer the underdog in the courtroom. It creates genuine accountability mechanisms, so that state cover-ups are much harder to conceal and the truth is much harder to bury. This Bill is for the 97, but also for the victims of every other state failure, and for every family who might in future face the nightmare of being left alone to fight for truth and justice. Despite the promise in 2022, in March this year the Government brought forward a watered-down version—a replacement Bill, not the Hillsborough law that the Prime Minister promised. They presented it to the legal experts who wrote the original Bill, and those experts said unequivocally that it fell far short, because it had no legally binding duty of candour, no provision for equal legal funding during inquests and inquiries, and loopholes allowing public bodies to avoid disclosure. Worse still, that draft followed a family listening day, organised by the brilliant organisation Inquest, at which Ministers heard directly from the families of the bereaved, including Hillsborough families. Those families made their views crystal clear, and their expectations were even clearer. The resulting report was not ambiguous—it was entitled “All or Nothing”—yet the Government returned with a hollow offering that delivered nothing of what was promised. Following widespread outrage from campaigners, that draft Bill was thankfully and rightly shelved, but we understand that a new replacement Bill, still without the key provisions of the Hillsborough law, could be imminent. This time, it will not be shared with the families or campaigners in advance. What does that say about the lessons learned? The resistance to the Hillsborough law is rooted not in legal complexity, but self-preservation. It is being led by those with the most to lose: senior officials and institutions who fear scrutiny more than they value accountability. Let me be absolutely crystal clear: this law will not weaken public institutions, but strengthen them. It will protect the vast majority of decent, hard-working public servants who, if pressured to conceal the truth, will finally have the law on their side. It will deliver justice more swiftly and affordably, reducing the need for drawn-out and expensive inquiries and inquests that cost the public purse hundreds of millions of pounds. This legislation is right here. It is written, ready and requires no redrafting and no more stalling. What it requires is political will. Just last week, 166 MPs and Lords from across these Houses signed a letter urging the Prime Minister to honour his pledge. The support spans parties, regions and generations, and that cross-party unity reflects the will of the public. They do not want another whitewash or betrayal; they want integrity and action. Let me close with this. The law cannot bring back the 97, erase the decades of pain or undo the trauma inflicted by callous lies and institutional neglect, but it can stop this ever happening again. It can give truth, fight injustice and restore some of the faith lost not just in the system, but in the very idea of justice. I say loud and clear to the Prime Minister: do not let this moment slip away. Do not let your promise made in Liverpool be broken in Westminster. Let us honour the 97 and so many others with not just remembrance, but change. I call on the Government to back this Bill—the real Hillsborough law—and I commend it to the House. Question put and agreed to. Ordered, That Ian Byrne, Kim Johnson, Paula Barker, Peter Dowd, Derek Twigg, Sorcha Eastwood, Siân Berry, Liz Saville Roberts, Jeremy Corbyn, Stephen Flynn, Tom Morrison and Richard Burgon present the Bill. Ian Byrne accordingly presented the Bill. Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time on Friday 11 July, and to be printed (Bill 280).

• 1 Jul 2025 · Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill · Hansard source

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  I just need to clear up a few things. This vote tonight is on the Bill that we have in front of us, which include includes restricting eligibility for PIP. Even with what the Minister has just said, three quarters of a million low-paid, sick and disabled people will lose the health element of universal credit, costing them £3,000 on average. That is £2 billion-worth of cuts even after what the Minister has just said. If the Government want to change it, they should pull it and start again. I know how frightened disabled people must be watching this debate tonight and seeing the shambles rolling out in front of us. Last night, I stood outside this building with people from Disabled People Against the Cuts, many of whom had travelled here despite the heat and the real hardship. They told me not just of their anger, but of their fear, their sense of betrayal and—I do not use this word lightly, Madam Deputy Speaker—of their terror. They are far from alone. At a recent citizens’ assembly in my constituency, disabled constituents and families came together to discuss this Bill. Not one person supported it. Yesterday, I asked the Secretary of State whether she could name a single disabled people’s organisation that supported this Bill. She could not name one—not one. Disabled people in my constituency tell me that they feel abandoned and punished. Perhaps most heartbreakingly, they believed that, after 14 years of Tory austerity and attacks, covid, and the cost of living crisis, a Labour Government—their Labour Government —would protect them. That belief has now been shattered. Madam Deputy Speaker, I ask myself how can I look them in the eye and tell them that they are wrong, because the truth is that this Bill is an absolute shambles. It is immoral. It has been rewritten on the fly. Policies affecting millions and millions of disabled lives have been made up in this Chamber over the past couple of hours. We are being asked to vote on a Bill, as legislators, without full impact assessments, without proper scrutiny, without even knowing what the final version will be. How can we vote for something so absolutely consequential for so many people in our constituencies across the country without the data, without the analysis and without everything that we need as legislators to make informed decisions? What we do know, though, is devastating. The Government’s own figures say that this Bill will push at least 150,000 more people into poverty and 100,000 more people into absolute poverty. It will create a cruel two-tier welfare system, where support depends not on need, but on when someone was assessed. That is not just unworkable; it is absolutely morally indefensible. Madam Deputy Speaker, some votes define us in here. They reveal who we are and who and what we stand for. This, tonight, is one of those votes. I say to colleagues, especially to those on my own Benches: do not ignore the voices of the people who need us most; stand with them. Stand on the right side of history. Vote against this Bill and hold your head up high.

• 30 Jun 2025 · Welfare Reform · Hansard source

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  These so-called concessions go nowhere near far enough, and tomorrow I will be voting against these cruel cuts, but I want to ask this. Can the Secretary of State name a single disabled person-led organisation that supports this legislation?

• 23 Jun 2025 · Points of Order · Hansard source

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  On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. Speaking at the Labour party conference in Liverpool in 2022, the Prime Minister said: “one of my first acts as Prime Minister will be to put the Hillsborough law on the statute book”. The Prime Minister said “the Hillsborough law”, not “a Hillsborough law”. This was an actual Bill that had its First Reading in March 2017, tabled by Andy Burnham and written by expert lawyers. As the parliamentary lead for the “Hillsborough Law Now” campaign and a Hillsborough survivor, I want to put on record the campaign’s grave concern about the status of the Hillsborough law. The Prime Minister missed his 15 April deadline after a replacement Bill was shown to lawyers involved in the campaign, who made it clear that it contained none of the key provisions of the Hillsborough law and did not deserve the name, and it was rejected out of hand. It is rumoured that the Government could be about to table another replacement Bill, still without any of the key provisions of the Hillsborough law and without allowing Hillsborough lawyers, families or survivors to see it. Government officials have even suggested that parliamentary procedure means that they are not permitted to first share it, despite the fact that that is what they did with the previous draft in March. Mr Deputy Speaker, I ask for your guidance on whether the draft can be first shared, as it was before, to give us a chance to raise any concerns before there is another betrayal of Hillsborough families and survivors, and all victims of state cover-ups.

• 23 Jun 2025 · Middle East · Hansard source

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  It is absolutely right to call for de-escalation at this extremely dangerous time; however, the Foreign Secretary will know that the United States’ attack on Iran has raised serious questions about violation of international law, and Israel’s genocide in Gaza and its occupation and settlements in the west bank are of course also illegal under international law. So can the Foreign Secretary tell me if the Government still profess to believe in the international rules-based order, or are we now admitting that we are content to support countries that act outside it?