MP Andy Burnham has called on the Football Association to explain why the 1989 FA Cup semi-final

MP Andy Burnham has called on the Football Association to explain why the 1989 FA Cup semi-final was held at Hillsborough despite the ground not having a valid safety certificate.

Liverpool fans filled Anfield with floral tributes in the days after the Hillsborough tragedy

Due to a breakdown in the relationship between Sheffield Wednesday and South Yorkshire Police, the ground was effectively unsuitable to host any football match, let alone the sell-out semi between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

Twice before had supporters escaped unharmed when a similar crush almost occurred.

The FA was criticised in the Taylor Report in the aftermath of the Hillsborough Disaster, but the level of evidence released this week and turned the spotlight back on English football's governing body.

Football Association chairman David Bernstein has issued an apology for the Hillsborough disaster.

Football Association chairman David Bernstein has issued an apology for the Hillsborough disaster.

Liverpool fans filled Anfield with floral tributes in the days after the Hillsborough tragedy

The apology came soon after the Hillsborough Family Support Group called on English football's governing body to say sorry.

The FA gave the go-ahead for the 1989 FA Cup semi-final, at which 96 people died, to be staged at Sheffield Wednesday's ground despite the fact that it had no safety certificate and had been the scene of potentially dangerous crowd situations in previous years.