Labour rejects calls for Oldham grooming gang inquiry

[Signalbox]

Are Labour right to push the responsibility for carrying out a public inquiry back onto Oldham Council?

I don't understand how it is considered acceptable for local authorities to carry out their own inquiries when they are often part of the institutional failure that allowed these crimes to be carried out on such a large scale over decades. Councils, police and social services were/are all implicated in the failure to act (or to actively obstruct) in some way or another.

"Phillips’ letter to Oldham Council, seen by GB News, claims it is for the the local authority ‘alone to decide to commission an inquiry into child sexual exploitation locally, rather than for the government to intervene.’ Reports have previously been commissioned and produced in Rochdale, Rotherham and Telford; Oldham now plans to launch its own Telford-style inquiry. Given the strength of feeling – which Phillips acknowledges in her letter – it seems inevitable that there will be questions or debate in the Commons when parliament returns next week."

"Yet for the hundreds of victims and those invested in bringing perpetrators to justice, this will seem pitifully inadequate. In each town where grooming gangs operated, similar patterns emerged: victims were ignored, law enforcement complicit and political officials more concerned about reputational damage than lives affected. Local authorities can hold their own inquiries, of course. But given the scale of these crimes, the fact they took place over decades, in many towns, suggests a level of institutional complicity requiring the attention of central government."

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/labour-rejects-calls-for-oldham-grooming-gang-inquiry/

Archive...

https://archive.ph/3greC#selection-1667.0-1759.570

Thoughtprovoking piece with keen observations. The quotation above about being "unmoored" reminded me of this where Matt Goodwin describes the rise of the "epistemic class" that shapes the prevailing culture, conversation, politics, arts, policy in a way that means all that they survey is familiar to them but unrecognisable to others outside that group. This overlaps with Rob Henderson's observations about luxury beliefs for which the harms accrue to others, and not those that espouse them.

For much of the last half century, the new elite, whose families often descend from the professional and managerial classes, benefitted far more than others…
Shaped by their privileged family backgrounds, their educational qualifications, and their much greater ‘cultural capital’…the new elite hoovered up most of the gains from Britain’s embrace of hyper-globalisation and a political economy which was rebuilt around them, which both demanded and rewarded their skills.
They’ve benefitted culturally, too. After flooding into the creative, cultural, knowledge and public sector institutions, becoming a new “epistemic class” which creates, filters and determines what is or what is not acceptable or desirable within the national conversation, the new elite watched the prevailing culture be completely reshaped around their far more socially liberal values, tastes, political priorities, and interests.
Increasingly, when they’ve looked out at the institutions and what they create -the television programmes, films, adverts, books, museums, galleries, columns, and the national conversation more broadly- they’ve seen their worldview staring back at them while millions of others struggle to recognise their worldview at all.

www.mattgoodwin.org/p/rise-of-the-new-elite

The silence over and deflection of discussion about grooming gangs is also misogynist specifically against the women in those communities. I seriously doubt the men who raped and tortured children are treating their own daughters and wives well and seeing them as fully equal. They might be treating them better than the girls they raped (it would be difficult to treat them worse - although there doesn't seem a lot of curiosity on this point given what would be a heavy price for any woman or girl trying to speak up), but that's not the same as well.

At the moment the UK is a place women from woman hating countries (e.g. Afghanistan) and their children can find refuge. The more we move towards the norms of those countries, towards girls at very young ages being seen as fair game for marriage and rape, then the less this is true. The only people who silence benefits is rapist men who seek to normalise their treatment of girls within UK culture. Far too many police and social workers seem to be going along with this cultural shift.

Of course it should be investigated. But it won't be, for all the same reasons that the gangs have been covered up and only pretend investigations have been carried out for decades.

Excellent article. She has articulated exactly what people living in those towns have known for decades.
Nothing will change though. Votes trump everything.
Louise Casey must be fed up of doing investigations and reviews to confirm what everybody knew, only to see that nothing changes.

This article is excellent, and pulls a few threads together

https://thecritic.co.uk/we-have-failed-our-children/

I don't see how, in the current 'ruling' culture, how safeguarding, Gillick competence, Mandatory reporting, and the rest can co-exist. Something has to give.

What a thought-provoking article. Thank you for this. I agree with your assessment.

I think it's just impossible in practice to have a rulings and rights based system which is a replacement for instead of a supplement to a shared cultural understanding of what's just "not on" (and cultural norms that enable bystanders to say this). Using "culture" in the broadest sense possible.

Instead we seem to have rulings and rights that prevent such bystander interventions.

Interesting perspective. Winston Marshall interview with Maajid Nawaz...

I don't think this article has been posted before

https://archive.ph/YStLf

https://www.spiked-online.com/2025/01/19/grooming-gangs-the-making-of-a-scandal/

It's a run through of the history of the rape gangs, the pincer of predatory men and fearful authorities that these children were crushed in. Having read it, I'm not certain what the inquiries the Government have proposed, or even a full inquiry, or, frankly, anything else will achieve. How are these men and their communities, that almost certainly contact more victims, going to be dealt with?

https://www.spiked-online.com/2025/01/22/the-british-pakistanis-who-spoke-out-against-grooming-gangs/

Another article about conflict between safeguarding and grooming

https://thecritic.co.uk/the-law-that-protects-predators/

I don't believe parents should have to consent to the abortion.

I wonder why this has taken so long to see the inside of a court room?

https://www.thetimes.com/article/67ad4d14-3689-4382-a4f6-2cd13af6718b?shareToken=d0f38d6995ce8f700f6c7e7de3d78026

The jury were told that both girls were known to social services and that it was “no secret” they were “having sex with older Asian men”. Scamardella said: “No reports were made to the police and nothing was done. No action was taken to stop what was happening to these two girls or to stop other similarly vulnerable girls suffering the same fate.”

The alleged abuse came to light when Girl A went to Greater Manchester police in 2015 to report that she had been a victim of child sexual exploitation. Girl B later followed with similar allegations.

I just want to post this article

https://www.spiked-online.com/2025/01/22/the-british-pakistanis-who-spoke-out-against-grooming-gangs/

These rapists are a blight on their wider communities and it's obvious that parts of their 'own' communities recognise that too. Makes a bit of a nonsense of part of the hands-off, community cohesion excuses for not dealing them.

Seems that Labour are absolutely desperate for people to stop talking about the “alleged” rape gangs. Just deal with the fucking problem Labour and stop implying that anyone who cares about the exploitation and rape of children is far right.

”The Home Office document also cites how right-wing extremists “frequently exploit” the grooming gangs scandal — described as “alleged group-based sexual abuse” — to promote anti-Muslim sentiment.”

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/two-tier-policing-claim-is-extremism-rejected-home-office-review-says-f2gtvnx7j

Archive…

https://archive.ph/6LB2i

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwy1pg73l9no

These bastards are everywhere and of every nationality.

https://news.sky.com/story/amp/two-former-south-yorkshire-police-officers-arrested-over-rotherham-sexual-abuse-claims-13298799

Two former police officers have been arrested over complaints from four victims of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham.

The police watchdog said the alleged offences are said to have been committed by the two former South Yorkshire Police constables, who were based in the town, while they were on and off duty.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cre8n7wr31jo.amp

Is this evidence multi culturism has failed? We have enshrined tolerance and respect for different cultures to an extent that it is unacceptable to scrutinise the dark side of any immigrant culture or belief and now it is coming back to haunt us. The PR for the Mulsim community has been coming from our liberal elites but no one seems to be able to critique any of the darker misogynist aspects of the faith. No one is saying all Muslims hold the same views but we shouldn't hide from scrutinizing the culture and faith of others if it leads to gross crimes like this.

I think there are too much remains hidden by the defence 'it's our culture and you should not interfere' generally and we can see many safeguarding failures as a result of this mantra.Light touch policing and social services desperate to look culturally sensitive have added to an environment where men have been able to commit Grace crimes with impunity.

Our children get taught RE at schools but they never get taught the really quite awful results of the consequence of misguided theological adherance. We are taught to respect other beliefs and cultures but not to critically scrutinise which may be is a historical failing that could be addressed.

Im not shocked by their involvement but pleasantly surprised that they've arrested them.

New documentary on rape gangs...

"Charlie Peters tells the full story of Britain's grooming gangs scandal. The original documentary which shook the nation, featuring exclusive interviews with survivors, whistleblowers and activists."

Triggernometry innterview with Charlie Peters...