The HIP Report, and the questions it raised, led to a decision to open new inquests into the disaster and separate decisions to start two new investigations.
The investigation into the disaster itself was given the name Operation Resolve. Operation Resolve was a police-led investigation, set up specifically to examine the events leading up to and including the disaster. It was launched in December 2012 at the direction of the then Home Secretary, Theresa May MP, and a dedicated team was recruited to undertake it. To ensure independent oversight and scrutiny, the elements of the Operation Resolve investigation relating to the police were managed by the IOPC.
The investigation into the actions of police officers and police forces in the aftermath of the disaster was started in October 2012 by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). It was subsequently taken forward by the IOPC, the organisation that oversees the police complaints system in England and Wales. The IOPC was established in January 2018 as a successor to the IPCC. It investigates the most serious matters involving the police, including deaths following police contact, and sets the standards by which the police should handle complaints.
