The chief constable of the South Yorkshire police force should resign over his force’s handling of the Hillsborough inquest, Labour’s shadow Home Secretary Andy Burnham has said.

Addressing a hushed House of Commons, Mr Burnham, who has been a longstanding campaigner for the families of the 96 victims of the disaster, labelled the leadership and culture at the force “rotten to the core” in a powerful speech.

The families have also called on South Yorkshire chief constable David Crompton to step down.

In a statement which drew applause from MPs, breaking House of Commons convention, Mr Burnham said the Hillsborough cover-up had been “advanced in the committee rooms of this House and in the press rooms of 10 Downing Street”.

Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Hillsborough disaster: in pictures The overcrowding at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Supporters are crushed against the barrier as disaster strikes before the FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest played at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Severe overcrowding resulted in 96 Liverpool fans losing their lives PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Advertising boards which were used as stretchers, are piled up following the overcrowding at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures A young Liverpool fan sat pitch side, following the events of the Hillsborough disaster, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool memorial service was attended by 3,000 people PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool footballer Dalglish and his wife Marina at the memorial service in the catholic Metropolitan Cathedral in Liverpool, in memory of those killed in the Hillsborough disaster, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Floral tributes are left by the goal at Hillsborough, April 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures John Aldridge laying a floral tribute, Anfield, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures A woman being comforted as she kneels by floral tributes at the gate of the Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield, the morning after ninety six Liverpool fans died from injuries suffered in the fatal crush at the ground PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Former chief superintendent David Duckenfield in 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher tours Hillsborough stadium with David Duckenfield (on her left) after the Hillsborough football disaster Rex Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Fans gathering at Anfield for a ceremony of remembrance following the Hillsborough disaster on 22 April 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Diana Princess of Wales talks to Liverpool fan and Hillsborough survivor Ian Clarke, 16 in Sheffield Hospital PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Sadness engulfs Anfield and the Kop Stand as many hundreds of thousands of tributes are laid in memory of the 96 people who died at Hillsborough Stadium on 15 April 1989 at the FA Cup Semi Final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool Manager Kenny Dalglish watches in anguish as dead and injured Liverpool fans are carried away in ambulances (Getty Images) Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Supporters pay their respects after the Hillsborough disaster at Anfield in Liverpool, 1989 Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures People help soccer fans at Hillsborough stadium after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham forest PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Policemen rescue soccer fans at Hillsborough stadium after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham forest Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster

“What kind of country leaves people, who did no more than wave off their loved-ones to a football match, sitting in a courtroom, 27 years later, begging for the reputation of their sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and fathers? The answer is one that needs to do some deep soul-searching,” he said.

Mr Burnham also called for greater state support to pay the legal costs of families in inquest proceedings, and asked the Government not to delay a second press standards inquiry into the relationship between the police and the media.

Responding to the Hillsborough inquest jury’s finding that the 96 victims of the 1989 catastrophe were unlawfully killed, Home Secretary Theresa May said that prosecutions could follow on charges including criminal negligence and perjury.

The Crown Prosecution Service would decide later this year whether charges should be brought, she said, but added that “no one should impute criminal liability to anyone while the ongoing investigations are still pending”

Mrs May also paid tribute to the Hillsborough families, saying we would “rarely see their like again” and praised Mr Burnham’s commitment to them.

David Cameron, told MPs earlier today that the families’ “search for justice” had been “met with obfuscation and hostility, instead of sympathy and answers.

“As I said to the House in 2012 about the Hillsborough Independent Panel's report, it's wrong that the families had to wait for so long and to fight so hard just to get to the truth,” he said.