Mr Grainger’s partner Ms Gail Hadfield-Grainger said in response to the Inquiry's findings  “it has taken seven years but some justice has been done today for Anthony. This devastating report shows that Anthony’s death was caused by a litany of catastrophic failures by Greater Manchester Police in 2012. It could and should have been prevented. It also exposes, that even now in 2019, Greater Manchester Police is unfit to control firearms operations. This is a scandal, which places other lives at risk. I have waited seven years for an apology from the Chief Constable. I am still waiting.

The Home Secretary set up this inquiry and this shocking report demands his immediate attention. He needs to explain to the public what he is going to do to make it safe for armed police to be deployed on the streets of Manchester. I ask the Home Secretary to sit down with me and other bereaved families to see what can be done to save lives.”

Tony Murphy, solicitor to Gail Hadfield Grainger, said “this is a landmark report for armed policing in this country. The scale of institutional incompetence uncovered by this inquiry within Greater Manchester Police, reveals evidence of corporate manslaughter in relation to fatal police shooting of Anthony Grainger.

We call on the Director of Public Prosecutions, Max Hill QC to urgently review this evidence with a view to instituting criminal proceedings against Greater Manchester Police as a body corporate for manslaughter.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct is already reviewing this evidence in order to decide on gross misconduct proceedings against the shooter Q9 and against senior officers.”

Ms Deborah Coles of the charity INQUEST, which supports the family, said “the evidence heard demonstrates the urgent need for culture change in police forces nationally, particularly amongst firearms officers, who must be open to scrutiny and learning. Openness and honesty by the police in relation to Anthony’s shooting could have saved time, public money, and significant pain for the family. 

Previous deaths have revealed serious failings and yet recommendations for change have been systematically ignored.

The failure to hold officers accountable for excessive use of force and unlawful killings breeds impunity. INQUEST hopes today’s conclusion will lead to full accountability for those responsible. The rule of law must apply to the police in the same way as it does to an ordinary citizen, in order to prevent abuses of state power”

Read the full Anthony Grainger Inquiry Report here. 

See media coverage in the Guardian here and here, the BBC here, Sky News here and the Express here.