Points of Order

Esther McVey Excerpts

Wednesday 26th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her attempted point of order. I think that it is fair to say that, on the strength of what I have heard, although the matter is of extreme concern to her, nothing disorderly has occurred. As the Minister is present, she is free to respond from the Dispatch Box if she so wishes, although she is under no obligation.

[The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Esther McVey)]

Further to that point of order, Mr Speaker. I did indeed reply to the hon. Lady. I know that she has tried to extend the commitment to an independent review. We said that we would monitor and review, and we currently have replies coming back in relation to a review by Matt Oakley. I know that that is the correct reply and that she has received several replies. I hope that that is the matter closed for the time being.

[Mr Speaker]

I thank the Minister for what she has said. The issue has been aired and I know that Members will accept that we cannot have a wider debate on it now.

Kevin Williams

Esther McVey Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd February 2012 Westminster Hall

[Esther McVey (Wirral West) (Con)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for City of Chester (Stephen Mosley) for bringing this much-needed debate to the House today. I also praise Mrs Anne Williams, her family and friends and the extended family of the Hillsborough 96 and supporters for fighting so hard to bring the debate here today to get justice for her son, Kevin.

I will not speak for long, as many other Members want to speak. It is important that they are all heard, because that will add weight and credence to the argument for a new inquest. However, I do want to highlight the fact that through a mother’s love and determination and through the efforts of the public, more than 116,000 people have come together in an e-petition. They all see the force of the argument and the need for a new inquest. That needs to be put on record. Powerfully and forcefully, we are all calling for a new inquest into the death of Kevin Williams.

The Coroners Act 1988 requires a coroner to hold an inquest where

“there is reasonable cause to suspect that the deceased…died a violent or an unnatural death”

or

“a sudden death of which the cause is unknown”.

If a person is dissatisfied with the outcome of the inquest, they can take further action to reopen the case. The Ministry of Justice states in “A guide to Coroners and Inquests”:

“It is possible to challenge coroners’ decisions and inquest verdicts”.

One way of doing that is by making an application to the High Court for judicial review, but we are seeking use of the

“separate power under which the Attorney-General may initiate an application to the High Court…for another inquest to be held on the grounds that it is necessary or desirable…because new evidence has come to light”.

That is precisely what we are calling for here today in respect of Kevin Williams.

Since the Hillsborough disaster, which took place almost 23 years ago, Mrs Williams has always disputed the claim that all 96 victims died of traumatic asphyxia, especially because she has evidence that her son showed signs of life as late as 4 pm. I do not want to cover what has already been stated by my hon. Friend the Member for City of Chester and by the hon. Member for Sefton Central (Bill Esterson). The situation was well and ably described by both of them. However, we have heard from very credible witnesses, an off-duty police officer and a special constable, who have said that they believed that Kevin was alive and that he opened his eyes and said “Mum” just before 4 pm. Mrs Williams also sought advice from three separate medical experts, who all stated that Kevin did not die of traumatic asphyxiation or he would not have shown signs of life as late as that.

However, the coroner who was in charge of the case, Dr Stefan Popper, stated that he would not take any evidence from after the 3.15 pm cut-off point—a cut-off point that I would say was imposed unnecessarily. He stated that all the victims would have died or been brain-dead within five minutes because of the surge of the crowd and the crush, but in the words of Mrs Williams:

“Kevin did not die from Traumatic Asphyxia or in an accident. I will not pick up his death certificate until we get the cause of death put right and the accidental death verdict struck down.”

I believe that in the light of the witnesses’ statements and the information given by other medical experts, all of which shows that Kevin was alive after the 3.15 cut-off point, it is imperative that a new inquest be granted for Kevin Williams.