Greens welcome Miners Strike Pardons Bill
The Scottish Greens have welcomed the Miners Strike Pardons Bill, which is being voted on this afternoon. The Greens will work with the Scottish Government to make the case for compensation for miners and a full public inquiry to examine alleged political complicity and interference in police operations during the strikes.
The Bill provides a pardon for miners who were convicted of certain offences relating to the 1984-1985 miners’ strike.
The Scottish Greens Justice spokesperson, Maggie Chapman MSP, said:
This is a very important and long overdue Bill. The process should have happened years ago and should have covered the whole UK, not just Scotland. I hope that other parts of the UK enact similar Bills and that those who have suffered are finally given the recognition that they deserve."
"The strike defined a generation. The injustice that was inflicted on the Miners was shameful. It was an ideologically driven attack by a Tory government that cared more about breaking the trade union movement than it did about the rights and wellbeing of the people and communities it was supposed to represent."
"We will work with the Scottish Government to make the case for compensation for miners from the UK government and a full inquiry to examine alleged political complicity and interference in police operations during the strikes.”