Bowled Out1

Millions of people in this country want justice and answers for the thousands of young girls who were raped and abused in the most evil ways imaginable. They want an end to the abuse that victims say continues to this very day. They are not the far-right - and to suggest otherwise is outrageous. They are normal people - including mothers and fathers who hear the testimony of the victims, and imagine it was their own children or grandchildren. They are rightly furious about the most appalling abuse of incredibly vulnerable little girls and the subsequent cover up. In seeking to smear individuals demanding an inquiry - which is supported by many victims - as ‘far-right’, Starmer displays the same attitude that led to this scandal continuing for so long. Where once weak and cowardly local councillors and officials suppressed proper scrutiny, now it is the Prime Minister himself. He has learned nothing. Starmer’s Government has launched more than 60 reviews since taking office, but won’t launch a national inquiry into rape gangs. Why? There is no acceptable excuse. Unlike during the last Government, Oldham Council have now requested Government support and say they are not best-placed to conduct a review. Victims now demand a national inquiry. Previous reviews have looked at specific places and elements of the scandal, but nothing has explored it in totality. Such grave state failure warrants the same form of national inquiry we have undertaken in the past. Nothing less is acceptable.