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Question
Referring to the recent cases in Ebbw Vale, how can the Government ensure that this town is not left behind as other areas see progress?
Minister reply
The Government will provide stronger national backing for local inquiries where needed and are already drawing up a duty of candour. £5 million additional funding will support further local work off the ground to get truth and justice for victims.
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Question
How does the Government plan to ensure that perpetrators of these crimes are held accountable?
Minister reply
The Government is bolstering work with police officers targeting online offenders and developing cutting-edge AI tools. Further measures will be announced in the crime and policing Bill.
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Question
Regarding the local inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Waveney, how can it ensure that recommendations are implemented?
Minister reply
The Government is working with mayors and local councils to bolster accountability mechanisms for local inquiries. This will ensure robust holding to account of those complicit in cover-ups or resisting scrutiny.
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Question
What specific steps are being taken to address child sexual exploitation and abuse in Lincoln?
Minister reply
The Government will provide stronger national backing for local inquiries where they are needed. A new framework for victim-centred, locally led inquiries is being developed with support from the independent inquiry’s truth project.
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Question
Will the Home Secretary apologise on behalf of the Prime Minister for his language last week?
Minister reply
The Home Secretary clarified that while the previous government did take some actions, such as setting up a taskforce following the IICSA report leading to 550 arrests in its first year, the government now intends to build upon this with new measures including mandatory reporting and comprehensive data collection.
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Question
Will the Home Secretary ensure both that the police follow through on the work initiated in April 2023 and that the data is collected more comprehensively?
Minister reply
The Home Secretary confirmed that the government will continue efforts started by previous initiatives, including initiating data collection on perpetrator ethnicity in April 2023, although initial publication last November showed incomplete data.
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Question
Did the Home Secretary say she will adopt all 20 of the IICSA recommendations or just those in the grooming gang strand? Do local authorities as well as police forces have to do a review into their cases of CSE?
Minister reply
The Home Secretary outlined that her government is taking forward swift implementation on some recommendations while complex issues will require more work. Local inquiries will be based on the Telford model with victim involvement, though not replicating it exactly and providing £5 million for national support.
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Question
How will my right hon. Friend ensure not only that the individuals responsible for this awful abuse will be caught and convicted, but that those who failed to protect and support these vulnerable young people will be held to account?
Minister reply
We need a stronger legal framework to ensure proper accountability, including making it an offence to cover up child abuse and introducing a duty of candour. This involves not just punishing perpetrators but also holding institutions accountable for failing to take necessary action to protect children.
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Question
What can the Home Secretary do to ensure that reports of child abuse are listened to and followed up, and will local inquiries have statutory powers to compel witnesses?
Minister reply
We need a stronger performance management framework in policing to follow up on reports. The current system is not strong enough, but we are working with Cabinet Office and local authorities to strengthen accountability arrangements for local inquiries.
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Question
Can I ask the Home Secretary that, when she is looking at these things, she ensures that those undertaking such inquiries look into facts about the abuse of young boys?
Minister reply
My hon. Friend is right to raise this issue. The independent inquiry identified patterns of online and contact abuse involving teenage or young boys, which needs to be taken seriously by local councils and police forces.
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Question
Will the local inquiries that the Home Secretary is advocating be truly independent and lead to convictions, or are they just local authorities marking their own homework?
Minister reply
We believe in strengthening accountability through existing powers and new frameworks. Local authorities need to support these inquiries properly, but we will work with them to ensure effective implementation.
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Question
I strongly welcome the comprehensive new national plan of action to put victims first and the appointment of Baroness Casey. Can I also urge a cross-party consensus on this issue?
Minister reply
The purpose of the audit by Baroness Casey is to identify the scale and characteristics of these crimes across the country, and she will make further recommendations about investigations needed. This must still be about victims and survivors and protecting them for the future.
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Question
What immediate steps are being taken to ensure that all alleged victims who come forward are treated seriously, with action taken to address their allegations?
Minister reply
We are already taking forward some of the recommendations. We will change the victims' right to review so that if victims have been to the police or a local authority and feel nothing is being done, they can seek an independent panel on child sexual abuse for an independent look.
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Question
Will the Home Secretary meet me and other victims to discuss changing the law in order to protect children born of rape?
Minister reply
I will happily meet my hon. Friend, and I know that the Safeguarding Minister will too. This issue is also being taken forward by the Ministry of Justice.
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Question
Will these new inquiries have the power to summon witnesses and require the production of papers? Why cannot she provide victims with protections?
Minister reply
A series of local inquiries have been held in different ways. The Rotherham inquiry led by Baroness Casey had powers to get to the truth, whereas the Telford inquiry did not but still uncovered serious problems and made serious recommendations.
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Question
How will we co-ordinate learning from local inquiries? Why does she believe that a statutory footing is not the right way to go?
Minister reply
There are over 500 different recommendations predominantly around child sexual exploitation. There is currently no proper process to follow them up, which is why we need a new performance framework for policing and a stronger framework for protecting children.
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Question
Why is she resistant to a broad-based national inquiry rather than a narrow five-town inquiry, and to statutory measures that will allow the inquiry to compel witnesses and evidence?
Minister reply
The importance of any independent inquiry lies in the independence of the decisions made by the chair about how it should be pursued. The IICSA inquiry took seven years with Baroness Jay leading, pursuing detailed investigations across different areas including churches, religious organisations, residential homes and schools.
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Question
The hon. Member is shocked that only two MPs participated in the Alexis Jay five-year inquiry and asks for the Home Secretary's agreement on ending child abuse tyranny.
Minister reply
I agree, these crimes have been ignored too long. There are currently 127 major police operations across 29 different police forces addressing child sexual exploitation and gang grooming. We are strengthening victims' rights to review cases and requiring police forces to look back at historical cases.
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Question
The hon. Member draws attention to her role in calling for an independent inquiry into child sexual abuse, welcomes the Home Secretary's acceptance of Professor Alexis Jay’s recommendations, but expresses concern about police investigations and institutional resistance.
Minister reply
I am happy to follow up on these serious issues. The right to review will be handled by an independent panel for cases where victims feel let down by a police force or CPS. We are also changing the police performance management framework to ensure recommendations are implemented.
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Question
The hon. Member welcomes the statement and urges the Home Secretary to make public the monitoring of progress on actions and provide regular updates.
Minister reply
We will establish a victims and survivors panel by the Safeguarding Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Yardley (Jess Phillips), and regularly update the House on the work of the cross-departmental group to implement recommendations.
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Question
The hon. Member welcomes the announcement but inquires about additional funding for local police forces, holding inquiries outside the five initial local authorities and recommended interventions.
Minister reply
We have identified up to £10 million for additional investment to support further action. However, tackling child sexual exploitation should be part of mainstream work done by agencies, not an add-on. The mission to halve violence against women and girls must be central across the Government.
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Question
The hon. Member welcomes Baroness Casey's appointment for rapid review into grooming and asks if child sexual offenders will face stronger punishment.
Minister reply
Yes, we will make grooming an aggravating factor in sentencing to ensure proper punishment for these terrible crimes.
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Question
The hon. Member questions if the duty of candour, responsibility and accountability is equivalent to statutory powers.
Minister reply
What we need is for the police to have full powers to pursue these crimes and follow wherever evidence takes them in order to put perpetrators behind bars.
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Question
Can the Home Secretary confirm that police forces such as West Yorkshire have the resources they need to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of child sexual exploitation?
Minister reply
We have increased resources for police forces across the country by up to £1 billion next year. It is important that all police forces see these crimes as part of their core work on public protection.
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Question
What discussions has the Home Secretary had with the Scottish Government to ensure a unified approach to tackling child sexual exploitation?
Minister reply
We are working closely with Police Scotland on a national approach. We also support the nationwide inquiry into both child sexual abuse and child sexual exploitation, which will help us fill gaps in evidence and take forward recommendations.
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Question
What measures are being put in place to ensure crimes of child sexual exploitation can be reported and command the confidence of victims?
Minister reply
We will ensure that police forces, local authorities, and child protection agencies have a proactive duty to pursue evidence wherever these crimes take place. This includes making it easier for victims to come forward and disclosing when children go missing from home.
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Question
Why does the Home Secretary not launch a national inquiry, rather than conducting an audit with Baroness Casey?
Minister reply
While I supported previous inquiries, we also have a responsibility to act on recommendations. We are launching an audit by Baroness Casey before proceeding with a social care commission and strengthening police investigations.
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Question
Will local inquiries take place wherever these crimes are taking place?
Minister reply
Wherever there are serious problems or failings, we want areas to conduct effective local inquiries. Tom Crowther will work with five initial areas to develop a model that can be used in other areas.
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Question
Why is comprehensive data on child sexual abuse not centrally identified, and why are foreign national offenders still in the same communities as their victims?
Minister reply
We believe better data needs to be collected. We will overhaul data systems for ethnicity of both perpetrators and victims. Foreign citizens who commit sexual offences have no right to stay and returns have increased by over 20% since the election.
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Question
How can we assist victims in disclosing abuse and ensure agencies act on those disclosures?
Minister reply
We will establish a victims and survivors panel to work with safeguarding Ministers. This panel will recognise the difficulty of coming forward and ensure investigations follow.
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Question
What measures are being taken to ensure safety for children against heinous crimes, and why not a public inquiry?
Minister reply
We have set up a programme to strengthen accountability measures, including criminalising the cover-up of child abuse. We also work with Police Scotland for a unified approach across the United Kingdom.
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Question
I welcome the Home Secretary’s statement on action to tackle child sexual exploitation. Does she share my concern about rapidly evolving forms of online abuse, including AI-facilitated material? What plans does the Government have to strengthen laws in this area?
Minister reply
My hon. Friend is exactly right. In addition to measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we need stronger laws against online abuse and exploitation. I am concerned about the pace at which these issues are escalating and their impact on young people.
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Question
Can my right hon. Friend confirm that the new victims and survivors panel will have representation from regions across the country to ensure victim voices are heard? Does she agree with dialing down political opportunism on this issue?
Minister reply
Yes, the victims and survivors panel will include people from right across the country. The inquiry into child sexual abuse had cross-party support, and I hope there will be similar support for implementing necessary actions.
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Question
Given that I am a Welsh MP, can the Secretary of State confirm that Welsh voices will be heard loud and clear on the victims and survivors panel?
Minister reply
We will ensure that Welsh voices are heard loud and clear.
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Question
My constituents have contacted me to express concern about underestimation of grooming activities. How can the Home Secretary reassure victims, survivors, and the public that future reporting systems will be more robust?
Minister reply
Some of this is about giving victims and survivors confidence to come forward, getting agencies to take risk factors seriously, and making sure we have stronger data requirements on police forces and local authorities so they collect information better.
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Question
I welcome the steps announced by the Home Secretary. The voices that matter when discussing these issues are those of victims and survivors, not billionaires or politicians weaponising their pain. Does she agree?
Minister reply
My hon. Friend is right. We need to ensure that victims and survivors are at the heart of this issue, rather than having inquiries sit on a shelf without action.
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Question
Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the measures announced today will build on recommendations from previous reports? Does she believe these measures should command support across the House?
Minister reply
I hope these measures command cross-party support because we need stronger action from police and local authorities, across Government, and communities to address issues that have not been adequately addressed for more than 10 years.
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Luke Myer
Lab
Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland
Question
My constituent has campaigned on safeguarding in the Church of England. Does the Home Secretary agree that measures must be brought forward without delay to implement Professor Alexis Jay’s recommendations?
Minister reply
My hon. Friend is right to point out that there were many further inquiries as part of the overarching national inquiry into child abuse, including on Church and faith organisations. We will monitor and look at the recommendations.
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Question
Many victims do not know they are a victim until they are an adult due to grooming. What more can be done to help children recognise abuse in their lives?
Minister reply
Part of our wider work on tackling violence against women and girls is to ensure that children and young people have the confidence to recognise abuse and exploitation, which is taken seriously by the Education Secretary.
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Question
Can the Home Secretary give a timetable or estimate for implementing the duty of candour to help victims feel their positions are not neglected? When can we expect this law?
Minister reply
Work is under way on drawing up the Hillsborough law, part of the King’s Speech, with support from across the Cabinet Office and Ministry of Justice. This work aims at proper accountability where things fail and people are let down.