A senior Labour politician has been accused of sexually abusing a number of vulnerable boys over a period spanning at least a decade. Some of the boys were allegedly “delivered” to his hotel room, while others are said to have been abused on a mental health ward.
The allegations follow a string of similar cases said to have been perpetrated by politicians, with some victims claiming the abuse took place as long ago as the 1960s.
According to The Sun, the allegations were made by two parliamentary colleagues of the accused, one a Conservative, and the other a Labour member. So far, both the accusers and the accused have not been named.
The Times has reported that the accused man, a former minister, has not been arrested, interviewed under caution, or spoken to by police. This suggests that no firm evidence has yet been found and nor are the police in contact with anyone claiming to be a victim.
However, the Conservative politician who contacted police has said that he has had information from a number of sources, some of whom do not know each other, all saying the same thing. He told reporters:
“Several people who have never met one another were all telling me the same, or similar, stories of corruption, indecency and paedophile offences.
“I was told that as far back as ten years ago, he was having young boys delivered to a hotel just a few hundred yards from a local police headquarters. But some of the cases were as recent as 18 months ago.
“The final straw came when I heard allegations that he had been abusing two youngsters in a mental health unit.
“After I was told about this, I thought for an hour or two and decided I would never forgive myself if this turned out to be another case like Jimmy Savile.
“I picked up the phone and made a call to a very senior police officer.”
The second MP has confirmed that he talked to the same police force, but has refused to give any further details. Police spokesman have so far declined to comment, but one of the MPs has said that a senior police officer told him “We are all over this MP.”
The allegations are likely to intensify demands that an inquiry take place into paedophile rings in Westminster. A number of high profile politicians have already been openly named in connection with orgies and brothels, including Cyril Smith, who was arrested at a sex party with teenaged boys in the 1980s, and Leon Brittan, who was named as a visitor to the notorious Elm Guest House in Barnes, West London during the same period.
But the latest allegations involve a member of parliament who is still serving in the Commons, and who is said to have committed offenses much more recently. One of his accusers said:
“There have been stories doing the rounds about this fellow for some time.
“You hear lots of gossip in Westminster — but all of this had a ring of truth about it. In our job you quickly get adept at weeding out the fact from the fiction. I heard lots of different stories from all sorts of people. I’ve got no concrete evidence but the sheer weight of numbers made me think I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing.
“There were a whole range of allegations from corruption to cottaging, using rent boys and abusing minors. I’ve been told how former police officers say he has been arrested before for indecent behaviour and has on occasions assaulted them.
“There was another story about him intervening to stop a man who was running a male brothel from being evicted over rent arrears.
“I was also contacted by self-help organisations who told me the MP had a liking for young ragamuffins, which I took to mean vulnerable young boys. The final straw came when I heard about his alleged involvement with two youngsters at a mental health centre.
“They are about 17 now and one is in fear of his life. I’m told he thinks the MP will have him killed if he speaks. It made my blood run cold. It was this that convinced me to go to police and tell them everything I know. It’s now down to them to get to the bottom of this by talking to everyone concerned.”
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