Football Poets

News story from 28th June 2010.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has apologised after suggesting that hooliganism played a part in the Hillsborough football disaster.

Ninety-six fans were crushed to death on 15 April 1989 at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough stadium.

He praised the England fans at the 2010 World Cup saying the “terrible problems” of “Heysel and Hillsborough in the 1980s seem now to be behind us”.

Apologising afterwards, he said: “I know that fan unrest played no part in the terrible events of April 1989 and I apologise to Liverpool fans and the families of those killed and injured in the Hillsborough disaster if my comments caused any offence.”

Margaret Aspinall, chairman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, called for a face-to-face meeting with Mr Hunt.

She said: “After all these years of fighting for justice I am very angry that he has shown such ignorance of the facts.

Mrs Aspinall, who lost her 18-year-old son James in the disaster, said she would not accept Mr Hunt’s apology unless she was allowed to meet him and “explain the facts”.

She added: “I want him to understand that he has reopened old wounds which should have healed many years ago”.

“The problem we have is that Hunt has influence and people listen to him”.

“We have fought to move forward but now – thanks to him – it feels like we have taken a step backwards.”

Speaking in the House of Commons, Derek Twigg – MP for Halton in Cheshire – said Mr Hunt’s remarks were “a disgrace”.

He added that he had spoken to relatives of those who had died and they were “deeply distressed”.

“How can they have trust in the Government that they will see through the proper release of the Hillsborough files given that that’s the view held in high parts of the Government?”

The above excerpts from BBC website.

Note to the BBC :
Not all 96 who died were Liverpool fans.