Why is there a national inquiry into grooming gangs and how is it going?
A national inquiry into grooming gangs was announced by Keir Starmer in June but it is yet to get under way.So far, a suitable judge has not been identified, one of two named candidates to become its chair has said she will not stand and three survivors have stepped down from the panel overseeing the recruitment.It followed disclosures over many years that thousands of girls and women across UK towns and cities were groomed and raped by street-based groups.In a majority of these gangs, there appeared to be a pattern of men, often of Asian and Pakistani origin, grooming vulnerable girls.Nearly all of the cases were historical and date back to the 90s and 00s.
Grooming gangs were among the issues looked at by an independent inquiry into institutional sexual abuse of children – which also covered child exploitation by organised networks, as well as abuse within the care system, in penal institutions, and in the Catholic and the Anglican Church.That inquiry, launched in 2015 and led by Prof Alexis Jay, published its final report in 2022.However, survivors of grooming gangs and their legal representatives said that the Jay inquiry did not go far enough.Some victims claimed that it avoiding confronting the cultural drivers behind mainly Asian gangs exploiting young white women.Under pressure from survivors and political opponents in the Conservative party and Reform UK – which is currently riding high in the polls – Starmer commissioned an audit led by Louise Casey into grooming gangs.
One of her findings was to order “a new national inquiry to direct local investigations and hold institutions to account for past failures”,There have been ongoing tensions over the new inquiry, with survivors unhappy with the terms of the inquiry, and difficulties finding someone to act as its chair, as first disclosed in the Guardian,Over the last 24 hours, three abuse survivors have resigned from their roles,“Elizabeth” – not her real name – joined Fiona Goddard and Ellie-Ann Reynolds, who quit the inquiry’s victims and survivors liaison panel on Monday in protest,Reynolds said the final turning point for her was “the push to change the remit, to widen it in ways that downplay the racial and religious motivations behind our abuse” – an incendiary allegation which has been denied by government sources.
The Guardian has been told that former senior social worker Annie Hudson, who had been named as a potential chair, has withdrawn following recent media coverage over her candidacy.One of the other names being considered to lead the inquiry is former deputy chief constable Jim Gamble.A meeting between Gamble and survivors took place earlier, with both sides said to have listened to each other’s perspectives.Both women who resigned from the inquiry had expressed concern about the candidates shortlisted to chair the inquiry, because they were a former deputy police constable and the other a social worker.Goddard said: “This is a disturbing conflict of interest and I fear the lack of trust in services from years of failings and corruption will have a negative impact in survivor engagement with this inquiry.
”Some politicians including Reform’s Lee Anderson have called for the minister to step down.However, she has decades of experience working with sexual and domestic abuse victims and is respected across parliament for helping to uncover many instances of sexual abuse, not least among MPs’ own ranks.She has rejected concerns from survivors that the inquiry will dilute the inquiry or make it more general, adding that the inquiry will “remain laser focused on grooming gangs” despite the survivors citing heavy criticism at the Home Office’s handing of the issue.
Georgina Hayden’s recipe for parmesan and sage jacket potato gnocchi | Quick and easy
If I’m going to the effort of making jacket potatoes (and by effort I mean putting them in the oven for an hour), I will almost always pop in a few extra spuds to make gnocchi for a later meal. The difference between shop-bought and homemade gnocchi is vast, especially the vac-packed, long-life kind, which are dense and can be heavy. Freshly made gnocchi, with fluffy baked potatoes, however, are light as air, pillowy and silky. If that sounds intimidating, let me reassure you that this recipe is really forgiving, and much easier than making fresh sheet pasta. I love them served simply, as here, with a slightly nutty sage butter and lots of parmesan
How to make the perfect strata – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect…
Also known variously as “breakfast casserole” and “egg dish”, strata is an American brunch favourite that, according to the great US chef Sohla El-Waylly, is best described as “the love child of frittata and bread pudding”, while the dish’s name comes from the fact that it’s assembled in layers. Like all the best leftovers recipes, those layers are eminently flexible, but what all strata have in common are stale bread and eggs. The rest is largely up to you.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link
Scottish hospitality coalition urges chancellor to protect whisky industry
A coalition of drinks, tourism and farming bodies has urged the chancellor to protect the Scottish whisky industry from a steeper sales slump and further job losses by freezing spirits duty in her budget next month.The grouping, which includes the Scottish arms of the National Farmers’ Union, the Institute of Directors and UKHospitality, has written to Rachel Reeves to argue that a freeze in duty would be a “strategic investment” that could increase tax revenues.They said recent rises in spirits duty had taken the overall tax paid on the average bottle of whisky to at least £12, or 70% of the retail price, contributing to about 1,000 redundancies in whisky production since last year’s budget, when spirits duty rose.“The current duty regime, combined with wider economic headwinds, is placing significant strain on both producers and venues,” the joint letter said. “Some businesses are halting investment or looking abroad, while others are being forced to cut jobs
‘I felt my soul leave my body’: 13 readers on the worst meal they ever cooked – from ‘ethanol risotto’ to gravy cake
There are lots of potential errors a home cook can make, whether mistaking a bulb of garlic for a clove or experimenting with a banana sauce for pork. Here are some culinary experiments to avoidI’m very fond of steamed vegetables with lemon and black pepper. When I was pregnant, my loving partner took it upon himself to cook for me. We didn’t have any lemons. We did have kiwis
670 Grams, Birmingham B9: ‘A cascade of small, meaningful bowls that just ooze flavour’ – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants
Birmingham’s dining scene often leans towards the intense. I recall a hazy afternoon seven years back at the Digbeth Dining Club, a ramshackle food market inside an old factory with few seats, loud music, breakfast cocktails and baos; it was a thoroughly chaotic way to take on board calories. More recently, I loved the city’s Albatross Death Cult, which served 12 courses of scintillating, seafood-focused finickiness to a pounding, darkwave industrial-goth soundtrack.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link
‘£30 for a ready meal?!’ Do Charlie Bigham’s new dishes really beat going to a restaurant?
Like Tesla cars and the ending of the Sopranos, Charlie Bigham ready meals seem to be rather divisive. On the one hand, people clearly love them: about 31m dishes were sold in the past year alone. On the other hand, they generate a heap of mockery. The critique seems to be that only a gullible idiot would shell out up to a tenner on an oven-ready fish pie, chilli con carne or – as one commentator once memorably labelled it – a tray of “Tory slop”.Those critics will be sharpening their kitchen knives because Bigham, who is a kind of Tim “Wetherspoons” Martin for centrist dads, has just announced the launch of his Brasserie range: deluxe versions of his meals with prices that fetch up to … wait for it … £30! Thirty whole English pounds!With a menu consisting of venison bourguignon, coq au vin, confit duck (all at £16
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