Page 714 - Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Coverage Book 2023-24

It followed complaints by survivors that it was "unacceptable" following his 2016
publication of a book by Sir Norman Bettison, who was accused of trying to blame
Liverpool fans for the tragedy in which 97 supporters died.
In a website post, external, Mr Dale said he had previously hosted two events in the
city and the venue's cancellation "didn’t show any backbone at all".

IMAGE SOURCE,PA MEDIA
Image caption,
Sir Norman Bettison (seen here in 2017) also became Chief Constable of
Merseyside Police in 1998 following a controversial appointment
In 2016, an inquest jury found Liverpool fans were not to blame for the disaster and
instead blamed police failures, stadium design defects and a delayed response by
the ambulance service.

Two years later, charges were dropped against Sir Norman, who was accused of
telling lies about the "culpability of fans" and his role following the tragedy.

Prosecutors said there had been insufficient evidence and no real prospect of
securing a conviction.
Shortly after the 2016 inquest conclusion, Mr Dale, who was then working at the
firm Biteback Publishing, acquired rights to Sir Norman's book on the tragedy.

At the time, Mr Dale said: "While we deeply respect the rawness of emotions
surrounding Hillsborough, we hope Sir Norman's voice can only add to the ongoing
narrative and maybe shed some new light."