Welsh Government pledges full co-operation with grooming gangs inquiry
The Welsh Government will co-operate fully with the national inquiry into grooming gangs and child abuse, the First Minister has said.
Eluned Morgan said she welcomed the decision by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to hold a statutory inquiry into child abuse across England and Wales.
Baroness Casey's report, published on Monday, found the ethnicity of perpetrators had been 'shied away from', with data not recorded for two-thirds of offenders.
The rapid national audit looking at the scale of grooming gangs across the country was first announced in January as part of a series of measures to tackle the issue.
Earlier this year, the Government dismissed calls for a public inquiry, saying its focus was on putting in place the outstanding recommendations made in a seven-year national inquiry by Professor Alexis Jay.
Speaking at First Minister's questions in the Senedd, Ms Morgan said: 'This is an incredibly sensitive issue and whenever we discuss these issues, it's really important that we put the needs and concerns of the victims right at the very centre of what we do.
'I want to reassure you that there's absolutely no complacency in the Welsh Government.
'If women or children are being abused, I want to know about it and I want us to step in and to prevent it.
'That's why we know that there's already been this independent inquiry into child sexual abuse that was chaired by Alexis Jay and we are already undertaking the recommendations set out there.
'As you will be aware, the steps that happened was that the Prime Minister commissioned Baroness Casey to carry out an audit in relation to grooming gangs.
'We didn't say we were rejecting it, we said let's do the audit first.
'That audit is now taking place and Baroness Louise Casey herself has now said that she's changed her mind about a national inquiry.
'We welcome the decision made by the Prime Minister to undertake a national statutory inquiry into grooming gangs and of course they will have our full co-operation.'
The First Minister was responding to questions from Senedd Conservative leader Darren Millar who had first raised the issue of a Wales-only inquiry in January.
'In the absence of a UK inquiry into the prevalence of grooming gangs, I called upon your Welsh Government to establish a Welsh grooming gang inquiry,' he said.
'You refused. You suggested that the issue had been politicised to the point where people feel threatened and twice expressed disappointment that I was raising the issue in the Senedd.
'When describing the experiences of just one Welsh victim, I was jeered at, heckled and interrupted by members of this Senedd, including, I'm very sorry to say, members of your own Welsh Government.
'We're now in June, and finally, after many months of delay, and more hurt and harm caused to those brave victims who've spoken out about their experiences, the UK Government has finally agreed to a national inquiry into grooming gangs.
'Do you regret rejecting the calls of victims and survivors for an inquiry last January?
'Do you accept that the delay has caused further harm and hurt?
'Will you now give a full, public commitment that the Welsh Government will back that UK inquiry and instruct all public bodies under your control here in Wales to cooperate fully with it, because victims and their families deserve nothing less?'
Mr Millar cited the Jay inquiry finding evidence of children being sexually abused in Swansea, and other reports detailing abuse in Newport and Wrexham.
'The evidence is clear, sexual exploitation has been happening right under our noses here in Wales,' he said.
'The Casey report also suggests that the Welsh Government has failed to provide information that she also requested and it warned that fear of being accused of racism has deterred authorities from action both here in Wales and in other parts of the UK.'
In reply, the First Minister said the Welsh Government would be looking at the recommendations of the Casey report 'to ensure there is full cooperation'.
'I have written to the Home Secretary to ensure that Welsh issues and any recent events, as well as historic events will be investigated and analysed by this inquiry,' she told the Senedd.
'It is clearly an issue that needs to be addressed. I think lessons need to be learnt. We mustn't shy away from collecting data on the ethnicity of perpetrators.
'I think abuse is abuse and it must be condemned irrespective of where it comes from.
'But what we will do is to ensure that we comply and we work with the inquiry to make sure that we do everything we can to stop this hideous approach and the things that are happening to young girls in our community stop.'
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