Only a nationwide inquiry into the grooming gangs and the authorities’ handling of the sex-abuse scandal can restore the public trust, a Labour MP for Rotheram and advocate for women and children’s rights, Sarah Champion, has said.
The lawmaker, who represents one of Britain’s worst rape hotspots, made the call in a statement on Monday, saying Child sexual abuse has become an “endemic” problem for the UK and must be recognized as a “national priority.”
“It is clear that the public distrusts governments and authorities when it comes to preventing and prosecuting child abuse, especially child sexual exploitation,” the MP said.
The statement constituted a sharp change in Champion’s stance on a potential inquiry, as the MP appeared to reject the idea just a week ago. During a debate in the Commons on a Conservative-proposed amendment to a child protection bill that would have set up a national inquiry into the grooming gangs, the MP called for immediate implementation of the recommendations outlined in the 2022 Report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse instead.
“With the best will in the world – you all know me; I am not making a party-political point – another inquiry will mean another ten years of waiting,” she reasoned at the time.
The Tory amendment fell through, getting overwhelmingly rejected by the parliament by 364 votes to 111, with all 411 Labour MPs either voting against it or abstaining.