'MI5 can't be trusted' say Manchester Arena families
The inquiry into the bombing found it could have been stopped if MI5 had acted on key intelligence in the months before the attack.
Last updated 6th Jan 2026
Families affected by the Manchester Arena bombing have said MI5 failed them and must be more open to scrutiny.
In a letter sent to the Prime Minister seen by the BBC, the families demanded the security service be fully included in a new law designed to stop cover-ups in public life.
The inquiry into the bombing found it could have been stopped if MI5 had acted on key intelligence in the months before the attack.
"How many times must MI5 show that it cannot be trusted before something is done?" the letter read, according to the BBC.
Sir Keir has introduced a so-called Hillsborough Law in Parliament - the Public Office (Accountability) Bill - which will force public officials, and contractors, to tell the truth in the aftermath of disasters, and to investigate bodies.
Suicide bomber Salman Abedi killed 22 people by detonating a homemade rucksack bomb in a suicide attack at an Ariana Grande concert at the venue in May 2017.
His brother Hashem Abedi, who was convicted of assisting with the terror plot, was jailed for life with a record-breaking 55-year minimum term in August 2020.
In December, a judge ruled that almost £20 million is to be paid out to children injured in the bombing.
Amounts ranging from £11.4 million to £2,770 were agreed at a hearing at the Manchester Civil Courts of Justice for 16 victims, all aged under 16 at the time of the attack, with the total amount to be paid coming to £19,928,150.
Some suffered "catastrophic" and life-changing injuries, while others suffered psychological damage from witnessing the carnage.