HALTON BOROUGH COUNCIL ORGREAVE RESOLUTION

On Wednesday 16th October, 6.30pm at Runcorn Town Hall, Cllr Lauren Cassidy will  be proposing a motion to Halton Borough Council supporting OTJC and the call for a public inquiry.

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MOTION TO COUNCIL: ORGREAVE 

Proposed: Cllr Lauren Cassidy

Seconded: Cllr Geoff Zygadllo

This Council is concerned and disappointed by the previous Home Secretary’s rejection on the 31st October 2016 of an Inquiry into the policing of events at Orgreave. This Council notes, since this decision was taken, a new Home Secretary, Priti Patel, is now in office.

Council is pleased to note the decision by the Scottish Parliament on 7th June 2018 to order an independent review to investigate and report on the impact of policing on affected communities in Scotland during the period of the miners’ strike from March 1984- March 1985. This Council further praises the decision of the Welsh Assembly on 12th June 2018 to write to the Home Secretary, to ask for an independent review into policing in England and Wales during the miners’ strike, and on 13th June 2018 to also write again asking that the Home Secretary orders an inquiry specifically into the policing at Orgreave on 18th June 1984.

Council asks, in the light of such statements from the Scottish and Welsh government, what the Home Secretary has done since these statements, to take these into account and express their views, on a full public inquiry into the events at the Orgreave coking plant on 18th June 1984. Council notes that 95 miners were arrested and charged with offences, but were all later acquitted amid claims that police at the time had fabricated evidence.

Halton Council observes that the Independent Police Complaints Commission said about Orgreave on 18th June 1984 in their report released in June 2015 “that there was evidence of excessive violence by police officers, and a false narrative from police exaggerating violence by miners, perjury by officers giving evidence to prosecute the arrested men, and an apparent cover-up of that perjury by senior officers”.

This Council is of the view that the Home Secretary needs to acknowledge the action of the Scottish government and the call from the Welsh government and confirm their response.

Halton Council resolves to write to the Home Secretary to ask that they acknowledge the response of the Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, explains what action they have taken in response and takes into account the opinion of this Council and accepts that there is widespread public concern about events at Orgreave and calls for them to order an inquiry into them. 

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(Halton Borough Council is a Unitary Authority in the North West).