After national inquiry ordered into grooming gangs, Chancellor Reeves denied victims’ concerns were ever dismissed by the government
The UK government has formally announced a full statutory national inquiry into grooming gangs, after months of political and public pressure over the systemic failure to protect children from sexual abuse in towns across England and Wales.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves defended the timing of the move on Sunday, insisting that ministers “never dismissed the concerns of victims” and that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had acted “not for grandstanding, but for the victims.”
The decision follows a rapid review by Baroness Louise Casey into child sexual exploitation by organised networks. The review’s findings, which are expected to be published on Monday, recommend the establishment of a national inquiry with statutory powers to compel testimony and evidence. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is due to address the House of Commons following the report’s release.
According to Reeves, the government’s focus until now had been on implementing the 20 recommendations made by Professor Jay’s inquiry in 2022. But Baroness Casey’s review, commissioned by Starmer himself, was meant to assess whether further action was required.
Sir Keir announced on Saturday that he had accepted all of Baroness Casey’s recommendations, pledging a full investigation covering England and Wales. The move marks a shift in Labour’s stance, after earlier rejecting the need for another inquiry on the grounds that the issue had already been investigated in the landmark seven-year Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) led by Professor Alexis Jay.
Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Reeves denied that the government had initially resisted the idea. “We’ve never dismissed the concerns of victims. These are the most important people in those discussions,” she said.
According to Reeves, the government’s focus until now had been on implementing the 20 recommendations made by Professor Jay’s inquiry in 2022. But Baroness Casey’s review, commissioned by Starmer himself, was meant to assess whether further action was required.
“The prime minister wanted to assure himself he was doing everything necessary, which is why he asked Baroness Casey to do this rapid review,” Reeves said.
The announcement comes amid fierce criticism from across the political spectrum, with both Labour and the Conservatives accused of dragging their feet.
Maggie Oliver, a former detective who resigned from Greater Manchester Police over the force’s handling of grooming gang cases in Rochdale, welcomed the inquiry but criticised both major parties for failing victims. “The Conservatives and Labour have been dragged kicking and screaming to this point,” she said. “For me, I can only look at them with contempt, because I see on the ground the suffering that their neglect has caused.”
Oliver described the inquiry as “an important step on the journey to change” and said Casey’s report would finally “lift the lid on what has been going on.”
Shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride echoed the criticism, saying the government’s U-turn had come “far, far too late.” He accused Starmer of previously dismissing Conservative calls for a national inquiry as “some kind of far-right bandwagon.”
“That was the wrong response,” Stride said. “This is just another example of the prime minister being pressurised by us into U-turning.”
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) welcomed the announcement, but warned against further delays in acting on known failings. Chief executive Chris Sherwood said, “A national inquiry into abuse by organised networks must not delay urgent action on child sexual abuse that is long overdue.”
Survivors, he added, have already waited over two years for the recommendations from Professor Jay’s final report to be implemented. That inquiry concluded that child sexual abuse had reached “epidemic” levels in England and Wales and revealed widespread institutional failures.
The issue of grooming gangs has long provoked national outrage, with high-profile cases in Rotherham, Rochdale, Telford, and other towns involving predominantly Pakistani-heritage men exploiting vulnerable white British girls. Earlier this year, the debate reignited when tech billionaire Elon Musk criticised Starmer for failing to order a national inquiry, drawing renewed attention to the matter.
At the time, the government stopped short of launching a statutory probe, instead announcing five localised inquiries—including one in Oldham and four more areas yet to be named. A senior government official has now confirmed that the national inquiry will coordinate with and expand upon these targeted investigations.
Unlike previous efforts, the new inquiry will have full statutory powers to compel witnesses to testify and force public bodies to hand over evidence.
While political fallout continues over the delay, victims’ groups say what matters now is action. “We don’t need more lip service,” one survivor advocate said. “We need justice, accountability, and real protection for future generations.”
