Mahmood pledges 'moment of reckoning' over grooming gangs

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has promised "a infinitesimal of reckoning" for those who turned a unsighted oculus to the the ungraded of grooming gangs.

The standard of maltreatment was acceptable retired by Prof Alexis Jay's Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) successful 2022, but erstwhile Labour won the wide predetermination successful July 2024, nary of her 20 recommendations had been implemented.

Baroness Louise Casey was past commissioned to audit the "culture and societal drivers" of the maltreatment successful a accelerated review, which Downing Street has said is concluding this month.

Pressure for a caller enquiry from immoderate victims and governmental opponents has been resisted, with the authorities focused connected implementing the 2022 recommendations.

Conservative person Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK's Nigel Farage person backed calls for an 18-month nationalist enquiry with powers to compel witnesses to attend.

Under the proposal, which is backed by immoderate Labour politicians, the enquiry would sanction immoderate institutions oregon individuals liable for covering up kid enactment maltreatment perpetrated by grooming gangs.

On Sunday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper was challenged by the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg about the government's rejection of a nationalist enquiry and the "lack of urgency" connected implementing recommendations already made.

Cooper did not regularisation retired a nationalist enquiry but said it volition beryllium connected the findings of the Casey report.

Speaking to the Spectator, Mahmood said determination is inactive an "outstanding question of wherefore truthful galore radical possibly looked the different way".

The Justice Secretary acceptable retired however galore of the perpetrators are present successful prison, but galore victims inactive don't consciousness they person seen justness due to the fact that failures by the authorities person yet to beryllium addressed.

"On 1 level you could say, well, accountability is occurring due to the fact that these criminals are facing the afloat unit of the law," she said.

"But the mode that this ungraded has played retired asks a bigger question, which is that you mightiness beryllium getting accountability and justness done the transgression justness system, [but] it doesn't consciousness similar due accountability and justness for each of the victims.

"And that's due to the fact that determination is inactive [an] outstanding question of wherefore truthful galore radical possibly looked the different way, oregon wherefore this wasn't picked up and fixed the prominence that was needed, and truthful that's wherefore justness mightiness technically person been delivered -- But there's inactive a infinitesimal of reckoning to come."

Prof Jay's seven-year probe recovered tens of thousands of victims had been failed by institutions crossed the country, including successful children's services and the police.

Mahmood said these organization failures had caused "such visceral symptom and a full shattering of spot successful radical who should person done a amended occupation locally".

"Whether section authorities, children's services, constabulary officers, each sorts of radical you would consciousness you tin trust, and that spot has been fundamentally shaken, if not wholly broken, successful immoderate of these places," she said.

"There is that request for reckoning. I anticipation I'm not overstating it arsenic information and reconciliation, but successful my mind, that's what it feels similar is needed."

The nationalist audit by Baroness Casey volition look astatine the scale, quality and illustration of grooming gangs, including offender characteristics, aft Prof Jay recovered "widespread failure" to grounds the ethnicity of perpetrators, galore of whom are of Pakistani-heritage, owed to concerns astir racism.

The authorities has besides announced circumstantial enactment for 5 section inquiries successful areas similar Oldham, but it has resisted unit from governmental opponents and immoderate victims to committee different afloat nationalist inquiry, saying its absorption is connected implementing recommendations made by Prof Jay's 2022 report.