Why is Labour rejecting a national grooming gangs inquiry?
Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips has proved resistant to calls for Home Office investigations into historic abuse.
TOM JONES
Last week, I wrote that Labour, during half a year in office, has launched a staggering 67 reviews and consultations, as well as “a new quango every week since coming to power”.
But it seems there is such a thing as an inquiry too far. Yesterday, it was reported that Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips had formally rejected repeated requests for a Home Office-led inquiry into Oldham’s historic rape gangs scandal, following a request by the local council. X owner Elon Musk then called for Phillips to be jailed as a result.
Phillips acknowledged the strong sentiment that a further inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Oldham should be conducted, but said that “it is for Oldham Council alone to decide to commission an inquiry into child sexual exploitation locally, rather than for the Government to intervene.”
A less charitable interpretation might point to self-preservation: despite her vocal opposition to violence against women and girls, Phillips may be worried about opening herself up to allegations of Islamophobia after nearly losing her seat to a pro-Gaza independent candidate last year. Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s seat of Ashton-under-Lyne previously covered part of Oldham, and Jim McMahon, the Local Government Minister, served as a councillor on the authority from 2003 and as leader between 2011-16.
The reasons for refusing a Government intervention can be disputed, but it cannot be disputed that it is reprehensible. The case for a centralised inquiry is clear: while this request was for Oldham alone, there has been a rape gang scandal in over 50 British towns and cities. This is a staggering scale of depravity, and most cases are marked by close resemblances in their systematic nature. The demographics of the rapists are often disproportionately men of Pakistani origin and their victims are particularly vulnerable young girls, often in social care. There have been large-scale cover-ups within ethnic communities, social services, police forces and council authorities.
Politicians have taken to passing laws named after victims — such as Martyn’s Law, Clare’s Law, Harper’s Law — to ensure the often appalling and nightmarish circumstances of their deaths never happen again. By contrast, it seems like politicians cannot wait to forget the victims of Britain’s grooming gang epidemic.
While there have been isolated inquiries, such as the Jay Report and a 2013 report by the Home Affairs Committee, these have not provided sufficient answers. But a report solely into the events in Oldham will arguably suffer from the same issue, as will any report provided by a council reporting on its own conduct. Given that many of those involved may still be serving, it will be difficult to name the individuals at fault.
Rather than treating each gang as a separate problem, the Government should launch an inquiry that deals with the disturbing phenomenon as a whole. It should treat this as what it is: a national problem, not isolated incidents. It should provide the resources, authority and backing necessary to deal with the crisis as such and tackle the institutional cover-ups which happened time and time again, regardless of the council area responsible.
If politicians want to look us in the face and promise “never again”, as they seem so keen to do on so many other issues, the inquiry must identify the exact names and positions of those responsible for cover-ups. Every single one should be named, fired, disbarred from public office and tried, not just pour encourager les autres but to provide justice for the thousands of vulnerable women and girls who were failed. That alone is not enough, though. We must establish RICO-like laws to allow for individual prosecutions of those abetting the gangs and, given the role of multiple police forces already established in cover-ups, authority should be handed to domestic intelligence agencies. A stain so large on the soul of our nation requires a national clean-up.
Elon Musk: Jess Phillips Deserves to Be in Prison Over Labour Refusal to Launch Grooming Gangs Inquiry
Elon Musk has said Jess Phillips “deserves to be in prison” over Labour’s refusal to hold a public inquiry into historic sexual abuse by grooming gangs in Oldham. The Telegraph has more.
Elon Musk attacked the decision as “disgraceful” and Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said a full national inquiry into rape gangs was “long overdue”.
Jess Phillips, Labour’s Safeguarding Minister, insisted it was “for Oldham council alone” to decide whether to launch an investigation into alleged exploitation between 2011 and 2014.
A 2022 report found children in Oldham were failed by agencies that were meant to protect them amid alleged grooming by “predominantly Pakistani offenders” in council homes, shisha bars and by taxi drivers.
Oldham Council’s Labour group last year agreed to support an independent inquiry, writing twice to Ms. Phillips urging the Home Office to support this work.
The Minister replied: “It is for Oldham Council alone to decide to commission an inquiry into child sexual exploitation locally, rather than for the Government to intervene…
“I welcome the council’s resolution to do so, as set out in your letter, and to continue its important work with victims and survivors.”
Responding to a report on Ms. Phillips’s remarks on his social media platform X, Mr. Musk claimed that she “deserves to be in prison”.
Mrs Badenoch also shared her view on the platform on Thursday and said: “The time is long overdue for a full national inquiry into the rape gangs scandal.
“Trials have taken place all over the country in recent years but no one in authority has joined the dots. 2025 must be the year that the victims start to get justice.”
In further posts, Mr. Musk accused Ms. Phillips of a “disgraceful” decision and suggested she had rejected an inquiry in order to shield Sir Keir from blame.
He continued: “In the U.K., serious crimes such as rape require the Crown Prosecution Service’s approval for the police to charge suspects.
“Who was the head of the CPS when rape gangs were allowed to exploit young girls without facing justice? Keir Starmer, 2008–2013.
“Who is the boss of Jess Phillips right now? Keir Stamer [sic]. The real reason she’s refusing to investigate the rape gangs is that it would obviously lead to the blaming of Keir Starmer [head of the CPS at the time].”
Sir Keir ordered a comprehensive review of CPS guidelines on sexual exploitation as Chief Prosecutor in 2012, admitting the service had failed a generation of girls who were abused. …
Sir Keir gave the green light to prosecuting the Rochdale grooming case, the first of its kind, and said in 2023 he was in favour of “anything we can do to crack down on these cases”.
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