A group of 20 MPs have called for concrete action to be taken against “sickening” grooming gangs, as the government was accused of “letting down” thousands of victims of child sexual exploitation in the UK.
In a letter to the Home Office noting “alarming” similarities in how the gangs of mostly Pakistani-heritage men operate across Britain, the cross-party group called for government research into why the abuse is taking place.
The MPs, who largely represent areas where grooming has been rife, stated: “Cases of gang related child sexual exploitation, such as those in Rotherham, Telford and in Newcastle conform to a precise model of recruitment, manipulation and exploitation.
“Despite these commonalities, we are not aware of any research being undertaken to understand the drivers for this kind of crime.
“We believe the Government should commission research covering the specifics of gang grooming including the national networks in which this crime exists.” the group told Home Secretary Sajid Javid.
At the top of the list of signatories were the names of Labour MP Sarah Champion and Tory MP Lucy Allan, who represent Rotherham and Telford, respectively.
Both constituencies were revealed in recent years to have seen decades-long child abuse scandals in which politically correct authorities turned a blind eye to the industrial-scale sex trafficking and mass rape of thousands of vulnerable girls at the hands of mostly-Muslim grooming gangs.
Speaking with Sky News, Ms. Champion said: “It’s absolutely sickening that child abuse can take place on an industrial scale and more isn’t being done about it. It’s a national scandal that this is even happening at all – it’s not just in Rotherham, it’s right across the UK. It’s time the government stepped up and stopped this once and for all.”
The letter came as Jayne Senior, the whistleblower awarded an MBE for services to child protection for her part in bringing the Rotherham abuse to light, blasted the government’s record on helping victims of CSE.
She said: “When I went to see David Cameron in 2015, I naively believed that this issue would be resourced. That the victims would be given an opportunity to not only come forward but also to receive support around therapy and counselling.”
“But that hasn’t happened,” she told Sky News, asserting that the Rotherham scandal “has been forgotten” as the government failed to keep promises regarding support for victims and better resources for police.
”I thought we’d have a blank piece of paper and we’d be able to look at education, policing, law and social services, but that’s not happened,” Mrs Senior added.
Politicians from around the world have accused the UK government of political censorship in recent days after citizen journalist Tommy Robinson was arrested outside Leeds Crown Court on Friday and pleaded guilty to contempt of court after publishing information that could prejudice an ongoing trial.
Mr. Robinson had breached conditions of a suspended sentence, again for contempt of court, handed to him in May 2017 for filming four men accused of gang rape outside of Canterbury Crown Court. He has been jailed for 13 months.
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