Preliminary Hearing, 14 January

In light of this week’s announcements on further lockdowns and restrictions Sir John Saunders, Chairman of the Manchester Arena Inquiry, has had to consider the impact on the Inquiry’s oral hearings.

He has decided to pause the hearings until 18 January to give the Inquiry time to consider its options which could include the use of virtual hearings and very restricted attendance in person hearings.

The Chairman of the Manchester Arena Inquiry has made a ruling on the Inquiry’s hearing arrangements in light of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and following the preliminary hearing on 14 January.

Hearings will resume on 18 January with some changes to the format. These arrangements will be kept under review and the future course of the Inquiry will be considered in a preliminary hearing on 16 February.

The Chairman’s full ruling, outlining the current arrangements, is available here.

Hearings will continue for the period of 22 February to 3 March with some changes to the format. For the period 22 February to 3 March, the Inquiry will continue to sit for two and half days per week. There will be limited attendance in Court and all others are required to follow the hearing virtually. These arrangements will be revised again after 3 March.

The transcript from the preliminary hearing held on 16 February to hear submission on the hearing arrangements, which includes the Chairman’s ruling, is available here.