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| Battle of Orgreave: home secretary to decide on new inquiry Battle of Orgreave: home secretary to decide on new inquiry | |
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| A decision on whether to launch a new inquiry into the “battle of Orgreave”, one of the most brutal episodes during the 1984 miners’ strike, is due to be announced by the home secretary, Amber Rudd. | A decision on whether to launch a new inquiry into the “battle of Orgreave”, one of the most brutal episodes during the 1984 miners’ strike, is due to be announced by the home secretary, Amber Rudd. |
| Rudd is expected to announce on Monday some form of inquiry into the clash between 6,000 police officers from forces across the country and striking miners during a mass picket at Orgreave coking works in South Yorkshire in June 1984. | Rudd is expected to announce on Monday some form of inquiry into the clash between 6,000 police officers from forces across the country and striking miners during a mass picket at Orgreave coking works in South Yorkshire in June 1984. |
| Campaigners have voiced serious concerns about the form of a possible inquiry, fearing that it would fall short of a full judge-led investigation and instead consist only of a senior legal figure reassessing the available archives and papers. | Campaigners have voiced serious concerns about the form of a possible inquiry, fearing that it would fall short of a full judge-led investigation and instead consist only of a senior legal figure reassessing the available archives and papers. |
| Hopes of a full inquiry were raised earlier this year when Theresa May’s current chief of staff in Downing Street, Nick Timothy, endorsed the call for an Orgreave investigation. | Hopes of a full inquiry were raised earlier this year when Theresa May’s current chief of staff in Downing Street, Nick Timothy, endorsed the call for an Orgreave investigation. |
| He said: “If the police pre-planned a mass, unlawful assault on the miners at Orgreave, and then sought to cover up what they did and arrest people on trumped-up charges, we need to know.” | He said: “If the police pre-planned a mass, unlawful assault on the miners at Orgreave, and then sought to cover up what they did and arrest people on trumped-up charges, we need to know.” |
| But other Conservative commentators have rejected his advice, arguing that an inquiry would only reinforce the impression that the Tory party was the “nasty party” or that it would in some way diminish Margaret Thatcher’s “victory” over Arthur Scargill. | But other Conservative commentators have rejected his advice, arguing that an inquiry would only reinforce the impression that the Tory party was the “nasty party” or that it would in some way diminish Margaret Thatcher’s “victory” over Arthur Scargill. |
| Ninety-five miners were charged following the clashes, some of them unprovoked, outside the coking plant between Sheffield and Rotherham, but their trial collapsed amid allegations that officers colluded to write court statements. | Ninety-five miners were charged following the clashes, some of them unprovoked, outside the coking plant between Sheffield and Rotherham, but their trial collapsed amid allegations that officers colluded to write court statements. |
| Barbara Jackson, the secretary of the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, said: “We trust that Amber Rudd will announce the only right decision, namely that there must be an inquiry into what happened at Orgreave and after it. These events are too serious to let them lie. | Barbara Jackson, the secretary of the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, said: “We trust that Amber Rudd will announce the only right decision, namely that there must be an inquiry into what happened at Orgreave and after it. These events are too serious to let them lie. |
| “However, we have real concerns about what sort of inquiry the home secretary will establish: history is littered with examples of inquiries that have disappointed, such as the ‘establishment led’ Stuart Smith scrutiny into Hillsborough which completely failed to get to the truth, and we are keen to ensure that the home secretary does not make similar mistakes over Orgreave.” | “However, we have real concerns about what sort of inquiry the home secretary will establish: history is littered with examples of inquiries that have disappointed, such as the ‘establishment led’ Stuart Smith scrutiny into Hillsborough which completely failed to get to the truth, and we are keen to ensure that the home secretary does not make similar mistakes over Orgreave.” |
| The campaigners believe that a proper inquiry does not need to be expensive or overly long as the Independent Police Complaints Commission has already carried out two years of investigation into the Orgreave case and transcripts of the criminal trials already exist. | The campaigners believe that a proper inquiry does not need to be expensive or overly long as the Independent Police Complaints Commission has already carried out two years of investigation into the Orgreave case and transcripts of the criminal trials already exist. |
| However, they argue that a panel that simply gathers evidence would not be sufficient but must have the power to provide a critical analysis of the evidence and a detailed report of the sort produced by the Hillsborough independent panel. | However, they argue that a panel that simply gathers evidence would not be sufficient but must have the power to provide a critical analysis of the evidence and a detailed report of the sort produced by the Hillsborough independent panel. |
| Strong links have been drawn between the catastrophic failings of the South Yorkshire police that led to the deaths of 96 people at the Hillsborough football stadium in 1989 and the role of the same force in the police clash with the miners at Orgreave five years earlier. | Strong links have been drawn between the catastrophic failings of the South Yorkshire police that led to the deaths of 96 people at the Hillsborough football stadium in 1989 and the role of the same force in the police clash with the miners at Orgreave five years earlier. |
| Labour’s shadow home secretary, Diane Abbott, said: “The Orgreave victims and their supporters deserve justice. Their demands for a proper inquiry are fully justified. We now know that South Yorkshire police lied about what happened at Hillsborough when 96 football fans died. They were framed in the most disgraceful way and a mass cover-up aimed to hide police failings. | Labour’s shadow home secretary, Diane Abbott, said: “The Orgreave victims and their supporters deserve justice. Their demands for a proper inquiry are fully justified. We now know that South Yorkshire police lied about what happened at Hillsborough when 96 football fans died. They were framed in the most disgraceful way and a mass cover-up aimed to hide police failings. |
| “Yet only five years earlier, the same police force, with many of the same commanders, did the same at Orgreave during the miners’ dispute. They need the same justice. They need the same independent type of inquiry to establish the truth. It would be shameful if this government offered anything less.” | “Yet only five years earlier, the same police force, with many of the same commanders, did the same at Orgreave during the miners’ dispute. They need the same justice. They need the same independent type of inquiry to establish the truth. It would be shameful if this government offered anything less.” |