Standing up for families, workers and fairness

I can still remember, as a young child, hearing the shocking news that something terrible had happened at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough on 15 April 1989.

Ninety-seven lives were lost that day. But the tragedy was compounded by the decades-long struggle the families faced for truth and justice. Their courage and determination exposed shocking failures in how public authorities responded to disaster. They also inspired countless others – from Grenfell to Windrush – who have had to fight to be heard.

Last week, Parliament took a historic step forward. The Hillsborough Law, introduced by this Labour Government, is our promise that such cover-ups and injustices will never happen again.

This landmark legislation requires public authorities to act with honesty, openness and integrity during investigations, inquiries and inquests. Families who lose loved ones will receive free legal representation, so they are never forced to take on the State alone. And for the first time, it will be a criminal offence for public officials to deliberately mislead the public. This is how we ensure that no family must ever endure what the Hillsborough families went through.

This law would never have happened without a Labour Government. The same is true of the Employment Rights Bill, which will make work better and more secure for everyone in High Peak. I am proud to have been part of the parliamentary committee tasked with bringing these laws through Parliament. But last week, Reform, the Tories and the Lib Dems tried 12 times to weaken new laws that will: give workers access to statutory sick pay and parental leave from day one; ban the practice of sacking workers and re-employing them on worse terms and conditions; and end the use of exploitative zero-hours contracts. The other parties can try all they like – we will not back down. We will deliver the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation.

The Hillsborough Law and the Employment Rights Bill are about the same thing: social justice. Standing with families, standing with workers, and standing up for fairness. These are core Labour values, and I am proud to be part of a government putting those values into practice.