Supporters of around 70 English football clubs have vowed to boycott The Sun over its coverage of the Hillsborough disaster.

A motion passed unanimously by fans at the Football Supporters Federation (FSF) annual summit called on supporters to urge their clubs and retailers in their local area to stop selling the paper.

It was backed by fans of all 20 Premier League clubs and dozens of others from the lower leagues. The FSF has more than half a million members, who will now be asked to help spread the boycott.

The motion was proposed by Liverpool supporters group Spirit of Shankly and seconded by fans of Merseyside rivals Everton. It builds on the work of the Total Eclipse of the S*n campaign group that has sought to promote a boycott of the paper, which is already banned at a number of venues in Liverpool.

The motion states that, in the wake of the 1989 disaster that left 96 people dead, The Sun had published “blatant lies”, including claims that Liverpool fans had picked the pockets of victims and attacked emergency service workers as they tried to help the injured.

Liverpool supporter and Spirit of Shankly member Roy Bentham proposed the motion.

“We are absolutely thrilled that the motion was passed and passed unanimously,” he told the Liverpool Echo.

“Usually a motion will create some debate or amendments, but this just passed straight through without a single delegate voting against it.”

Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Show all 8 1 /8 Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Liverpool fans try and pull their fellow supporters out of the crush at Hillsborough stadium, 15 April 1989. Ninety-six fans were crushed to death and hundreds injured after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest Richard Sellers Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Football fans are rushed away on a stretcher at Hillsborough stadium, 15 April 1989. Ninety-six fans were crushed to death and hundreds injured after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest AFP/Getty Hillsborough Disaster 1989 The Sun has been boycotted in Liverpool since this edition, which lied about the behaviour of Liverpool fans on the day Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Hillsborough Memorial tributes lie on the pitch during the memorial service marking the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster, at Anfield Stadium on April 15, 2016 in Liverpool, England. Thousands of fans, friends and relatives attended the service at Liverpool's Anfield Stadium to mark the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy. 96 Liverpool supporters lost their lives during a crush at an FA Cup semi final against Nottingham Forest at the Hillsborough football ground in Sheffield, South Yorkshire in 1989 Liverpool FC via Getty Images Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Barry Devonside leaves Parr Hall, Warrington, where the Crown Prosecution Service has said, Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield, former chief constable Sir Norman Bettison and four other individuals have been charged with offences relating to the Hillsborough disaster. PA Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Family members react after the families of the 96 Hillsborough victims were told the decision that the Crown Prosecution Service will proceed with criminal charges and six people have been charged with criminal offences, including Ex-Ch Supt David Duckenfield and Sir Norman Bettison on June 28, 2017 in Warrington, England. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) revealed its intentions at a meeting with victims' relatives. Last year's inquests into the Hillsborough disaster concluded the 96 fans had been unlawfully killed Getty Images Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Norman Bettison was charged with four counts of misconduct in a public office. He was found to have lied on four separate occasions about his role in the deaths and when he claimed he never blamed Liverpool supporters for the disaster PA Hillsborough Disaster 1989 Former South Yorkshire Police match commander David Duckenfield is currently on trial for the gross negligence manslaughter of 95 Liverpool fans. Reuters

The Sun has since apologised for its coverage of Hillsborough. In 2012, it published an editorial calling the stories “our gravest error”.

“Today we unreservedly apologise to the Hillsborough victims, their families, Liverpool supporters, the city of Liverpool and all our readers for that misjudgement,” it said.

“The role of a newspaper is to uncover injustice. To forensically examine the claims made by those who are in positions of power. In the aftermath of the Hillsborough tragedy we failed. And by failing in our duty we heaped more misery on the families of those who lost their lives and the people of Liverpool.”

The paper’s coverage of the incident was “inaccurate, grossly insensitive and offensive”, it admitted.

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The motion passed by the FSF reads: “The FSF recognises and will not forget the hurt and distress caused to the people of Merseyside and to the wider football family by the lies and smears printed in The Sun, and, in particular, the distress caused to the families of the 96.

“Neither will the FSF forget The Sun’s refusal to apologise properly for the hurt it caused. The FSF also recognises that Liverpool fans suffered in this instance but that it could have been any set of fans.

"For these reasons the FSF and affiliated supporters groups and trusts call on all retailers and vendors of newspapers in [area name here] to stop selling The Sun.

“We applaud the group called ‘Total Eclipse of the Sun’ for their endeavours to rid the streets and... the football communities of this newspaper.

“The FSF requests its and affiliated supporters groups and trusts to call on all retailers and vendors of newspapers in their area to stop selling The Sun.”

It comes just days after the Crown Prosecution Service announced that six people will face criminal charges over their conduct in the hours prior to and after the Hillsborough disaster.