The families of Hillsborough victims have welcomed the decision by the police chief who criticised Liverpool fans after the inquiry into the disaster to step down.
Sir Norman Bettison is to retire as Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police following the controversy over his role in the tragedy.
Margaret Aspinall, chairwoman of the Hillsborough Families Support Group, said: "Obviously I'm very, very pleased. I'm absolutely delighted that he's going.
"But then he'll be going on his full pension, and I'd like to know the full reasons why he's choosing to retire as soon as this."
Anne Williams, whose 15-year-old son Kevin died in the tragedy, said the findings of the report left Sir Norman with no choice but to retire.
She said: "I think the whole lot of them who have been involved for these 23 years should all go for the hurt that they have caused us for 23 years. I don't think he would have retired if it wasn't for the Hillsborough report."
Last month, a damning report into the disaster - which saw 96 Liverpool fans crushed to death at Hillsborough Stadium in 1989 - revealed an orchestrated police cover-up.
The Hillsborough Independent Panel, which had access to 450,000 documents, found that 164 police statements were doctored - 116 of them to remove or alter "unfavourable" comments about the policing of the match and the unfolding disaster.
A complaint was made to police watchdog the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) that Sir Norman had supplied misleading information in the wake of the disaster.
The IPCC also said there was a second element to the referral, which related to a statement he made in September following the report.
In the statement, Sir Norman, who was the most senior serving officer involved in the discredited South Yorkshire Police investigation, said the Liverpool fans' behaviour made policing the tragedy "harder than it needed to be".
His comments sparked fury, and led to calls for him to resign.
Sir Norman responded with an apology and said his role was never to "besmirch" the fans and added that the Liverpool supporters were in no way to blame for the disaster.
Announcing his decision to step down, Sir Norman, 56, said: "Recent weeks have caused me to reflect on what is best for the future of policing in West Yorkshire and I have now decided to set a firm date for my retirement of 31 March 2013."
In a message posted on the West Yorkshire Police website, he added: "I hope it will enable the IPCC to fully investigate allegations that have been raised about my integrity. They need to be fairly and fully investigated and I welcome this independent and formal scrutiny."
West Yorkshire Police Authority chairman Mark Burns-Williamson said it was "the right decision".
"The bottom line has to be what is best for policing in West Yorkshire.
"Sir Norman has clearly taken that into consideration and already declared his intent to work with the IPCC investigation following the recent referral by the Police Authority."
