The Home Office has apologised to Hillsborough families who only learned of a new review into their relatives' deaths months after it started.
A new independent review considering what went wrong with the original pathology report was announced on Wednesday, October 5. The review, investigating the failings of the original Hillsborough inquests to ensure similar mistakes aren't made in the future, began on July 1 following the conclusion of the criminal trials.
But the families of Hillsborough victims said they were not notified of the review until the day of the official announcement. The families slammed the Home Office decision to not notify them about the review. Charlotte Hennessy, who lost her dad Jimmy in the disaster, said: "Where is the consideration for those bereaved families? It's just so disrespectful."
READ MORE: Hillsborough families only learn of new review three months after it started
Following pressure from the ECHO, the Home Office has now issued an apology to the families of the Hillsborough victims. A spokesperson for the Home Office told the ECHO : "The legacy of the Hillsborough disaster continues to deeply impact us all, and the families of the 97 people who lost their lives have shown vast strength and courage.
"We apologise to the families that they were not told in advance about the announcement of this review. This review is one of the recommendations of the Bishop James Jones report. We are committed to responding to the Bishop's report as soon as practicable, and will engage with the families during the process."
The review was set up in response to one of 25 recommendations in Bishop Jones' 2017 report. A damning criticism of the original pathology evidence was previously published in 2012, highlighting how the coroner at the first inquest, Dr Stefan Popper, ruled no evidence after 3.15pm was heard.
The review, which is being chaired by forensic science expert Glenn Taylor, will report its findings to home secretary Suella Braverman next summer. The review is expected to recognise the pathological failures, assess if there is a risk of similar failures being made again, and look at the accountability of practitioners and how it has changed since the original inquests.
The decision to move forward with the review without notifying the families was slammed by politicians including Andy Burnham, Steve Rotheram and Joanne Anderson. Mr Rotheram, metro mayor for the Liverpool City Region, said on Twitter: "Thoughtless and insensitive to hear the Home Office has announced a review into the failures in pathology at the original Hillsborough inquests without informing or talking to the families first. We will have more to say on this."
And now Mr Rotheram, Mr Burnham and the regions' MPs have publicly called for a pause in the review until proper consultation has taken place with the families. The statement said: "It feels so incredibly thoughtless, tactless and insensitive for the Home Office to announce a review into the failures of pathology at the original Hillsborough inquests without consulting the families and loved ones of the 97 first. It beggars the question who in government is choosing to run roughshod over this principle - and why?"
The statement added: "It took a decades-long struggle to establish the indisputable truth of what happened on April 15 1989. While justice has never been served for those who lost loved ones in that tragedy, we will not stand by and allow the establishment to conduct investigations without any recourse to the feelings of family members.
"We are therefore calling for a suspension of the proposed pathology review until proper consultation has taken place with the Hillsborough families and their consent is secured."
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here .
READ NEXT:
Drunken burglar stole and ate children's chocolate in 24hr crime spree
Boy, 10, with ASBO tried to become gang boss but got stabbed 27 times
Burglar chatted to bar staff before nicking booze worth £200
Dad whose cold sore kiss killed son launched vile attack on ex partner
'Show off driver' who left teen with fractured skull fails in bid to get licence back
