Government papers stored at the National Archives are sometimes withheld or weeded, but are an essential tool for research historians. It is disturbing to read that Northumbria police have destroyed files relating to Orgreave. This may have conformed with a document retention process, but Sherlock Holmes will not be required to work out why it happened just before the election of a government committed to an inquiry into the events that took place at Orgreave.
Perhaps the home secretary could ensure that no further police files are destroyed before the inquiry takes place, if necessary by requiring copies to be lodged with the civil servants responsible for setting it up. A democratic society needs an accurate record of its history, even if it may be an uncomfortable one for some.
Dr Keith Flett
London Socialist Historians Group
There is also a letter from Edward Rees KC
Update 20th July 2025
It’s good to see that the official inquiry has at last been announced, 40 years on. A tribute to the tenacity of Orgreave campaigners. An immediate first step must be to identify and secure all potential records and documentation relevant to the inquirry
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