British PN, David Cameron

BBC

The prime minister has said he is "profoundly sorry" for what he called the double injustice of the Hillsborough disaster.

He was addressing the House of Commons following an independent report into previously unseen documents about what happened on April 15, 1989.

Ninety-six fans died after a crush at Sheffield Wednesday's ground, reports the BBC.

David Cameron said the panel found the safety of the crowds at Hillsborough had been "compromised at every level".

Relatives of the Liverpool supporters who died at Hillsborough were briefed on the report on Wednesday morning.

Cameron said the double injustice was both in the "failure of the state to protect their loved ones and the indefensible wait to get to the truth", and in the efforts to denigrate the deceased and suggest that they were "somehow at fault for their own deaths".

He said details of the report were "deeply distressing" and said it showed the Liverpool fans "were not the cause of the disaster".

The report, by the Hillsborough Independent Panel, showed police and emergency services made "strenuous attempts" to deflect the blame for the disaster on to innocent fans.

Cameron said that Attorney General Dominic Grieve would review the report as quickly as possible in order to decide whether to apply to the High Court to order a new inquest.

Many relatives believe more lives could have been saved and hope the papers will shed new light on events.

Sheffield Wednesday issued an apology on Wednesday morning to all the families whose relatives were involved.

Bereaved mothers Jenni Hicks and Margaret Aspinall say they want accountability for those who died

The club said on its website: "Throughout the compilation stage, the club has worked closely with the panel and the other donating organisations to ensure that, in line with the ethos of maximum disclosure, we have been totally transparent.

"The club would like to offer our sincere condolences and an apology to all the families who have suffered as a consequence of the tragic events of 15 April 1989."

The families have been looking at the Hillsborough Independent Panel report at Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral.

Cameron also received a copy of the report after it was given to the families, in order to enable him to prepare his statement.

The panel has been scrutinising more than 400,000 pages of documents for the past 18 months.

A number of the victims' families have been campaigning for more than 20 years for the papers to be released.

The relatives started going into the cathedral to view the documents at 08:00 BST, before they are released to the public this afternoon.

Cabinet papers are not usually published in the UK until 30 years after they have been written, but MPs agreed to their full, uncensored disclosure last year.

Approval came after 140,000 people signed a government e-petition, set up by Liverpool fan Brian Irvine, to trigger a House of Commons debate on the issue.

The bereaved families - in their various organised groups, and individually, feel that the truth about how the disaster happened is yet to be told.

Over the years there have been allegations made, and yet never officially proven, of an establishment cover-up - a collusion between the media, police and government - aimed at deflecting blame on to the Liverpool fans.

Those who subscribe to this theory hope that the independent panel will provide the evidence required to confirm it.

Others hope the panel's findings will start the ball rolling for new inquests to be held.

Each bereaved family has its own wishes. What they, and Hillsborough survivors, have in common is the shared hope that, after 23 years, they will have the answers they've waited so long for.

The panel, chaired by Bishop of Liverpool the Right Reverend James Jones, said it had analysed more than 400,000 pages of documents relating to the disaster from more than 80 organisations.

Ninety-five fans were crushed to death and hundreds more injured on the overcrowded terraces of the Hillsborough stadium, which was hosting an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

The 96th victim, Tony Bland, was left in a coma after the disaster and died in 1993.

An independent inquiry led by Lord Chief Justice Taylor found the main cause of the disaster was a failure in crowd control by South Yorkshire Police.

But the victims' families hope the papers will shed more light as to exactly what caused the tragedy and what happened in the aftermath.

They want to know how the cabinet and then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher responded in the days and months that followed.

Margaret Aspinall, whose son James died at Hillsborough, said: "I think it is going to be hopefully a good day for the city, for the fans, but most importantly for the families, and hopefully we get what we should have had 23 years ago."

Mrs Aspinall, who is also chairwoman of the Hillsborough Families Support Group, said it was what the families and the fans have been fighting for 23 years.

Jenni Hicks lost both her daughters at Hillsborough - Victoria, who was 15 and 19-year-old Sarah.