Lucy Powell apologises to grooming gang victims over ‘dog whistle' remarks
The Commons Leader addressed victims and survivors as she told the House that she was 'very sorry' and the Government wants 'your truth to be heard wherever that truth leads'.
Ms Powell's apology came after shadow Commons leader Jesse Norman said his counterpart had received 'universal condemnation for dismissing concerns' about grooming gangs as 'dog whistle politics' during an appearance on BBC Radio 4's Any Questions programme.
When a recent Channel 4 documentary about five women's stories of being groomed and abused by gangs was raised by a fellow panellist, Ms Powell replied on the BBC programme: 'Oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now, do we? Let's get that dog whistle out, shall we?'
Ms Powell, speaking in the Commons on Thursday, said: 'I am very sorry for those remarks, as I made clear over the weekend. I and every member of this Government want your truth to be heard wherever that truth leads.
'Your truly appalling experiences need to be acted on, for those responsible to be accountable and face the full force of the law and for justice to be served.
'I would never want to leave the impression that these very serious, profound and far-reaching issues, which I have campaigned on for many years, should be shied away from and not aired. Far from it. No stone will be left unturned.
'And what the victims want first and foremost is for action to be taken and for the many, many recommendations from the previous inquiries to be implemented in full, including mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse – something I have called for for nearly a decade.
'Shockingly these recommendations remained sitting on the shelf until we came into government last year.
'Baroness Louise Casey, who conducted the no holds barred inquiry into Rotherham, is carrying out an audit on the scale, nature and characteristics of grooming gangs. She will be reporting soon. This will include the questions of ethnicity, as well.
'Every police force in England and Wales has been asked to look again at historic grooming gang cases and they will be reopened where it is appropriate to get perpetrators behind bars.
'So I hope the House is left in no doubt of my commitment to these issues and my apology to those victims for any distress I have caused them.'
Mr Norman earlier accused Ms Powell of having 'talked in the same way about grooming gangs' from the despatch box when 'she accused people of jumping on bandwagons on January 9 of this year' in business questions.
He said: 'I hope we can agree now that this is an extremely serious national issue and that no-one, whether or not they hold public office, should be deflecting or denying its seriousness.
'I hope that in her response now the Leader of the House will put aside party politics, avoid criticising others and speak from the heart.'
Mr Norman asked if Ms Powell had watched the Channel 4 documentary, adding: 'Does she agree that the dismissal of these entirely valid concerns has been one of the factors behind what even today remains a huge continuing national scandal.
'Will she now back the call of many victims for a comprehensive national inquiry into grooming gangs?'
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