Probe into policing of strike
Justice Secretary launches a review of policing during the tumultuous miners’ strike of 1984-85
CLAIMS of police violence during the miners’ strike in Scotland in the 1980s are to be investigated.
Justice Secretary Michael Matheson yesterday said he felt ‘obligated’ to launch a review into clashes, claiming the strikes had proved an ‘extremely turbulent, difficult time for many’.
He said the independent review would ensure that the confrontations between striking miners and police are ‘properly understood’.
Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said that the miners’ strike had been a ‘difficult period for the police, with many individuals finding themselves in challenging situations’.
ALLEGATIONS of police violence during the miners’ strike in Scotland will be the subject of an independent review.
Justice Secretary Michael Matheson announced the move yesterday and said he is ‘determined’ to do ‘right by those affected by the dispute’ in the 1980s.
He said he felt ‘obligated’ to launch an investigation into the violent clashes, claiming the strikes had proved an ‘extremely turbulent time for many’.
But concerns have been raised that former police officers may be worried about how the probe is carried out – and the results. Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘Where there are questions and issues that remain unsolved in the minds of the public and those who were directly involved in and affected by a dispute, it is always important that we look to understand and learn from the lessons of the past.’
Mr Kerr said the miners’ strike had also been a ‘difficult period for the police with many individuals finding themselves in challenging situations’. He asked Mr Matheson what ‘guarantees’ he could give to officers who are concerned about the findings.
Mr Matheson promised the review was not part of a ‘vendetta’ against police officers.
He said: ‘We have good relations with the police and no wish to pursue a vendetta, but it is time that what mining communities endured during the strike is properly understood.’
At Holyrood, Mr Matheson said: ‘I am determined the Scottish Government should do what it can to do right by those affected by the dispute.’
The UK Government has ruled out an inquiry into the confrontations between police and striking miners in Orgreave, South Yorkshire, in 1984. Mr Matheson said doing nothing was not an option and he urged Home Secretary Sajid Javid to follow his example.
John Scott, QC, will lead the inquiry, which will make recommendations by June next year.
Mr Matheson said: ‘Through this independent review, Scotland will lead the way in ensuring the experiences of those affected by the dispute in the 1980s are properly recognised.
‘Some communities have been blighted by the shadow of that time for too long.’
He also said there was an ‘obligation’ on the UK Government to ‘fully explore the extent of any political interference’ by the then government, led by Margaret Thatcher.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn welcomed the review in Scotland as he too demanded the UK Government launch an inquiry into ‘brutal clashes between police and miners during the strike’.
Mr Corbyn said: ‘The convictions of nearly 500 Scottish miners devastated not only their lives, but those of their families too while also scarring pit communities until this day.
‘This review must establish if these convictions were unjust and politically motivated.’
The miners’ strike took place after Mrs Thatcher announced plans to close ‘inefficient’ pits .
Mr Matheson told MSPs: ‘The scars from the experience still run deep. In some areas worst affected the sense of having been hurt and wronged remains corrosive and alienating.’
He said he understood the ‘great disappointment’ when former home secretary Amber Rudd had ruled out an inquiry into the ‘Battle of Orgreave’.
Mr Matheson said: ‘I made clear I thought that was the wrong decision – not least, because it seems clear that key elements in the mix, which need to be understood, were the attitudes and perhaps actions of the then UK Government.’
He said Mr Scott had agreed ‘to investigate and report on the impact of policing on affected communities during the period of the miners’ strike from March 1984 to March 1985’.
The review team will also include former independent MSP Dennis Canavan, former police assistant chief constable Kate Thomson and Jim Murdoch, professor of public law at Glasgow University.
Labour MSP Neil Findlay, who has campaigned for a public inquiry, welcomed the review.
He said: ‘This is a huge breakthrough in the fight for justice and the truth about what actually happened in Scotland during that period.’
Mr Matheson said Nicky Wilson, president of the National Union of Mineworkers, had given his ‘wholehearted backing’ to the review.
Mr Wilson said: ‘We will have a focused independent review which I hope will really get to the heart of the injustice experienced by mining communities.’
‘Learn from lessons of past’ ‘Brutal clashes during strike’