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A policeman who was at the Battle of Orgreave has described how bosses told him and colleagues to change their statements in a bid to throw striking miners in jail.

Scandal-hit South Yorkshire Police have dodged an inquiry into claims miners were beaten unconscious by officers on horseback during the 1984 strike.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) says too much time has passed, prompting fury and calls for a Hillsborough-style inquiry from figures including Labour's Yvette Cooper.

Now Tony Munday, who was on duty on June 18, 1984, has revealed in detail how he was told to change evidence on his police statement 'by a senior detective'.

(Image: John Harris / Report Digital)

Mr Munday said he was taken into a briefing room and told to include certain phrases 'required for a successful prosecution'.

He protested after the instruction made him feel 'very uncomfortable' but was told he had to obey it, he claimed.

Ex-cop Mr Munday told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "The person I lawfully arrested was taken by me and put into custody.

"We were in a briefing room and we were instructed by senior South Yorkshire detective to include phrases at the beginning of the statement and within the statement.

"I and a number of colleagues actually said well this is unusual, unprecedented, and we were told 'no'. It was a firm instruction - this was required for a successful prosecution.

"This was really very very strange it was very uncomfortable because these weren't my words."

Turning to host John Humphrys he said: "You say it was corrupt. that's not for me to say.

"This is about public trust and confidence. There's been people campaigning to find the truth.

"I was never given that opportunity in court or in a misconduct investigation."

South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Alan Billings compared the scandal to cases like child sexual abuse in Rotherham and the Hillsborough disaster.

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"I think it does a disservice to former miners who want to get to the truth of this," he told the BBC.

"I think it also does a disservice to the police, especially those sevring now, because they understand that unless you get to the bottom of these issues, unless you get to the truth, you can't move on."

But he warned an inquiry can't be funded without national backing, and said there was the danger of it running on for months without finding a clear answer.

Almost 100 miners – led by Arthur Scargill, who said he was knocked unconscious by a police "paramilitary force" - were charged with riot offences but were acquitted amid claims evidence was fabricated by police.

The IPCC spent two years considering the case after new evidence of police corruption emerged during the Hillsborough inquiry.

(Image: PA)

But IPCC deputy chairwoman Sarah Green said “the passage of time means allegations of assault and misconduct could not now be pursued”.

She said there had been “no miscarriage of justice” as the miners were acquitted.

Labour slammed the decision. Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper fumed: “This decision lets down the Orgreave families and shows the weakness of the current system.

“For too long there have been serious allegations about the way the miners were treated, but we have never had the truth.

“Its time for an independent inquiry, potentially modelled on the Hillsborough panel.

"It’s time for the truth.”

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Mark Metcalf, of the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign, said its members were “disappointed” but “not surprised”.

He said the campaign for a full public inquiry will continue.

“The fact the IPCC is stepping aside will not deter the OTJC from continuing its campaign,” he said.

Mr Metcalf said a public inquiry would lead to a “paper trail” to prove police actions in Orgreave were “influenced by political pressure from within the highest ranks of the Government of the day” under Margaret Thatcher.

Former miner Kevin Horne, 66, who was arrested for obstruction at Orgreave in 1984 but never charged, said: “I’m really disappointed.

“I think they’ve got away with murder really, because the evidence is all there.

“They don’t seem to have investigated properly - or it’s not in their power to do a proper investigation.”

Below: Nottinghamshire striking hero John Lowe