Bradford MP leads cross-party group on warning over grooming inquiry
Robbie Moore, MP for Keighley and Ilkley, has written to the Prime Minister calling for a 'survivor-led' approach to the inquiry's design and delivery.
The letter is signed by 98 other MPs across six different parties.
Moore said: 'We are united in one message. Put victims and survivors at the heart of the national rape gangs inquiry. No justice without them.'
In June, the PM announced there would be a national inquiry into grooming gangs.
It comes after the government commissioned a review into grooming gangs by Baroness Louise Casey, which has recommended a national inquiry, co-ordinating a series of targeted local investigations.
In Moore's letter, MPs urge the government to ensure the inquiry has a trusted mechanism for survivors to speak about their abuse and that there is formal survivor representation.
It says: 'For decades, survivors have spoken out about what happened to them. Many were ignored, disbelieved, or failed by all levels of the British state. They are now speaking again with the hope that people will finally listen to their calls. We need to make sure they are heard.
'[Survivors] bring a wealth of knowledge that will be vital to the inquiry. They must have formal, meaningful roles in shaping the inquiry's work and must not simply be consulted after decisions have been made.'
Signatories of the letter include Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform leader Nigel Farage.
Speaking about the letter, Robbie Moore MP said: 'It's a basic principle that every MP should agree on that there is no justice without survivors. If the Prime Minister wants this inquiry to succeed, then he needs to show victims and survivors that it is being done with them, not to them.
'For decades, Survivors have been ignored by all levels of the British state and this cannot be allowed to happen again. We now await a formal response from the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary and I urge them to adopt these proposals in full.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Leader Live
27 minutes ago
- Leader Live
How will the UK-France migrants return deal work as it comes into force?
The treaty was laid in Parliament on Tuesday, and will take effect from Wednesday with detentions expected in the coming days. The UK-France deal, which will also bring approved asylum seekers under a safe route to Britain, was agreed last month on the last day of French President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to the UK. Here is a closer look at the plan and what the issue is. – What is the concern over the Channel crossings? Some 25,436 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel this year – a record for this point in the year since data began being collected in 2018. This is up 48% on this point last year (17,170) and 70% higher than at this stage in 2023 (14,994), according to PA news agency analysis of Home Office data. At least 10 people have died while attempting the journey this year, according to reports by French and UK authorities, but there is no official record of fatalities in the Channel. Ministers want to end the crossings because they 'threaten lives and undermine our border security'. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has said smuggling gangs have been allowed to take hold along the UK's borders over the last six years, making millions out of the dangerous journeys. On Tuesday, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch claimed the failure to stop migrants crossing the Channel is putting community cohesion at risk. Data on the crossings of migrants in 'small boats' like inflatable dinghies has been collected since 2018. In the first year of data, just 299 people were recorded to have arrived in the UK this way. Since 2018, 94% of migrants who arrived by small boat crossing have claimed asylum in the UK, or 145,834 out of 154,354 people. – What has the Labour Government's approach been to the issue? Since Labour came to power last July, the party has vowed to 'smash the gangs'. Ministers are seeking to ramp up enforcement action against smugglers with new legislation to hand counter terror-style powers to police, and new criminal offences aiming to crack down on the illegal trade. This is my message to the people smuggling gangs: we will end your vile trade. For the very first time, migrants arriving via small boat will be detained and returned to France. My government has led the way in taking our countries' co-operation to a new level. — Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) July 10, 2025 The Government is also seeking to reset the UK's relationship with Europe over the crossings, and France has agreed to change its rules to allow police to intervene when boats are in shallow water, rather than requiring them to still be on land. Meanwhile ministers are hoping to deter new arrivals promised jobs when they come to the UK by cracking down on illegal working and deportations of ineligible asylum seekers. – What is the new deal and how will it work? Last month, the Prime Minister and French president agreed a plan to send back small boats migrants, with an asylum seeker being sent to the UK in exchange in equal numbers. Under the pilot scheme, adults arriving on a small boat can be detained and returned to France for the first time. The trial is set to run until June 11 2026, pending a longer-term agreement or cancellation by either the UK or France with one months' notice. Asylum seekers accepted to come to the UK under the deal would travel via a safe, legal route, 'subject to strict security checks'. Those in France could express an interest to apply for asylum to the UK through an online platform developed by the Home Office, and would then carry out the standard visa application process and checks. Priority will be given to people from countries where they are most likely to be granted asylum as genuine refugees, who are most likely to be exploited by smuggling gangs, and also asylum seekers who have connections to the UK. Borders are being breached by criminal gangs worldwide. Life-threatening Channel crossings have occurred for years – it is time to act. Border Security Command is how we fight back. — Home Office (@ukhomeoffice) March 4, 2025 If accepted, they would be given three months in the UK to claim asylum or apply for a visa, and would be subject to the same rules for all asylum seekers not allowed to work, study or have access to benefits. Their claim could still be rejected during their time in the UK, and they could then be removed from the country. It is not clear what the criteria will be for deciding which migrants who arrive in the UK by small boat will be sent back to France, other than being aged over 18. New arrivals will be screened at Manston processing centre, in Kent, which is current procedure, before individuals determined to be suitable for the pilot and for detention, will be picked and held in an immigration removal centre. Their removal is expected to be made on the grounds of inadmissibility, that they have arrived from the UK from a safe country where their case can be heard instead, because an agreement is in place with France. The treaty confirms the migrants would be returned back to France by plane, and commits for a return to be completed within three months in all cases. It also agrees for a joint committee to be set up to monitor the agreement and arrange logistics. Migrants will be able to appeal against the decision based on exceptional circumstances. The Home Office said it had learned from the 'lengthy legal challenges' over the previous government's Rwanda scheme and would 'robustly defend' any attempts to block removal through the courts. – How many people will be part of the pilot and much will it cost? No official number of migrants has been confirmed to take part in the pilot, but it is understood numbers will grow over the pilot period and depend on operational factors. The Home Secretary has said the Government does not want to put a number on the amount as she believes it could aid criminal gangs. It has been reported that about 50 a week could be sent to France. This would be a stark contrast to the more than 800 people every week who on average have arrived in the UK via small boat this year. There is no funding to France associated with this agreement, and operations around the returns and arrivals will be paid for from the existing Home Office budget. – What has the reaction been to the deal? Opposition politicians were scathing about the Prime Minister's deal with Mr Macron, with shadow home secretary Chris Philp claiming the small percentage of arrivals to be removed would 'make no difference whatsoever'. On Tuesday, he added: 'This deal is unworkable and wide open to abuse.' Reform UK leader Nigel Farage also branded it a 'humiliation'. Meanwhile refugee charities have also criticised the plan and have urged the Government to provide more safe, legal routes for asylum seekers instead. Reacting to the plan coming into force, Amnesty International UK's refugee rights director, Steve Valdez-Symonds, said: 'Once again, refugees are treated like parcels, not people, while the public is left to pay the price for, yet another cruel, costly failure dressed up as policy.'
The Herald Scotland
43 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Truss ‘carries quite a lot of blame' for Tory record, Badenoch claims
Speaking on a farm near Saffron Walden in her constituency, Mrs Badenoch also described herself as an 'Essex girl', and added that people from the county 'are grafters; they work hard'. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch wipes away grain dust after trying her hand at harvesting wheat (Stefan Rousseau/PA) The Leader of the Opposition faced questions about Ms Truss's claim that under the Conservatives, 'the economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by (Rishi) Sunak' and that 'the huge increase in immigration has been a disaster'. Mrs Badenoch told ITV Anglia: 'I know that, as a former prime minister and a former foreign secretary, (Ms Truss) carries quite a lot of that blame. 'The party's now under new leadership. 'I wasn't in charge during those 14 years; she was. 'That's a criticism she's probably levelling at herself.' The Tory leader also said she was 'telling the truth' about her party's record. Kemi Badenoch speaks to farmer Sam Goddard during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden, Essex (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'I'm telling the truth that immigration was too high – that's why we have much tougher policies to fix immigration,' she continued. 'I am telling the truth that taxes were too high, that we were putting a lot of regulation on businesses, and what we're seeing is Labour making every single thing worse. 'They're doing that because they haven't learned many of the lessons that we learned. They haven't learned from our mistakes. They're making worse mistakes.' The Labour Government's mistakes include making 'no cut in spending at all – the books were not balanced', Mrs Badenoch claimed. 'We're spending more on welfare than we are on defence – that cannot continue,' she said. Mrs Badenoch had previously told The Telegraph that 'for all their mocking of Liz Truss, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have not learnt the lessons of the mini-budget and are making even bigger mistakes'. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch drives a combine harvester during her visit (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Ms Truss, who spent 49 days in Number 10, hit back when she said that 'instead of serious thinking', Mrs Badenoch was 'repeating spurious narratives'. She continued: 'I suspect she is doing this to divert from the real failures of 14 years of Conservative government in which her supporters are particularly implicated. 'It was a fatal mistake not to repeal Labour legislation like the Human Rights Act because the modernisers wanted to be the 'heirs to Blair'. 'Huge damage was done to our liberties through draconian lockdowns and enforcement championed by Michael Gove and Dominic Cummings. 'The economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by Sunak. The huge increase in immigration has been a disaster.' Mrs Badenoch also took questions about her identity, after she told the Rosebud podcast: 'I have not renewed my Nigerian passport, I think, not since the early 2000s. Kemi Badenoch speaks to farmers during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'I don't identify with it any more, most of my life has been in the UK and I've just never felt the need to.' The North West Essex MP told ITV Anglia: 'I am definitely an Essex girl, that is a fact.' A London Assembly member before she took her Commons seat in 2017, Mrs Badenoch said: 'I represent an Essex constituency, these are my people. 'I was a Londoner, but Essex people asked me to be their MP, and I want to make sure that I do them proud. And I love this part of the world. 'It's fantastic being here. It's a rural community, and I've been talking to the farmers here. I talked about how my grandfather was a farmer, it's very hard work. 'The people of Essex and East Anglia – they are grafters. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch sits in the cab of a combine harvester (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'They work hard, and I want to make sure that we do right by them.' Mrs Badenoch spent Tuesday morning at a farm in Little Walden, where she tried her hand at harvesting wheat using a Claas Lexion combine harvester. She told farmers: 'A lot of farming just feels like constant interference. 'Everything is interfered from the minute you wake up.' Examples of interference included 'chemicals and insecticide, people you're hiring, how much you've got to pay them', plus changes to 'employers' NI (national insurance), then somebody wants to put pylons on, there's compulsory purchase, it's impacting the cost of the land, if you want to add a new farm building, there's planning applications', she said. 'It's just endless constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards'. 'And the burden in my view has now crossed the threshold.'
Glasgow Times
an hour ago
- Glasgow Times
Truss ‘carries quite a lot of blame' for Tory record, Badenoch claims
The current Tory leader said she was 'very focused on what the Conservatives are going to do now', after former prime minister Ms Truss accused her of 'repeating spurious narratives'. Speaking on a farm near Saffron Walden in her constituency, Mrs Badenoch also described herself as an 'Essex girl', and added that people from the county 'are grafters; they work hard'. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch wipes away grain dust after trying her hand at harvesting wheat (Stefan Rousseau/PA) The Leader of the Opposition faced questions about Ms Truss's claim that under the Conservatives, 'the economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by (Rishi) Sunak' and that 'the huge increase in immigration has been a disaster'. Mrs Badenoch told ITV Anglia: 'I know that, as a former prime minister and a former foreign secretary, (Ms Truss) carries quite a lot of that blame. 'The party's now under new leadership. 'I wasn't in charge during those 14 years; she was. 'That's a criticism she's probably levelling at herself.' The Tory leader also said she was 'telling the truth' about her party's record. Kemi Badenoch speaks to farmer Sam Goddard during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden, Essex (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'I'm telling the truth that immigration was too high – that's why we have much tougher policies to fix immigration,' she continued. 'I am telling the truth that taxes were too high, that we were putting a lot of regulation on businesses, and what we're seeing is Labour making every single thing worse. 'They're doing that because they haven't learned many of the lessons that we learned. They haven't learned from our mistakes. They're making worse mistakes.' The Labour Government's mistakes include making 'no cut in spending at all – the books were not balanced', Mrs Badenoch claimed. 'We're spending more on welfare than we are on defence – that cannot continue,' she said. Mrs Badenoch had previously told The Telegraph that 'for all their mocking of Liz Truss, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have not learnt the lessons of the mini-budget and are making even bigger mistakes'. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch drives a combine harvester during her visit (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Ms Truss, who spent 49 days in Number 10, hit back when she said that 'instead of serious thinking', Mrs Badenoch was 'repeating spurious narratives'. She continued: 'I suspect she is doing this to divert from the real failures of 14 years of Conservative government in which her supporters are particularly implicated. 'It was a fatal mistake not to repeal Labour legislation like the Human Rights Act because the modernisers wanted to be the 'heirs to Blair'. 'Huge damage was done to our liberties through draconian lockdowns and enforcement championed by Michael Gove and Dominic Cummings. 'The economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by Sunak. The huge increase in immigration has been a disaster.' Mrs Badenoch also took questions about her identity, after she told the Rosebud podcast: 'I have not renewed my Nigerian passport, I think, not since the early 2000s. Kemi Badenoch speaks to farmers during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'I don't identify with it any more, most of my life has been in the UK and I've just never felt the need to.' The North West Essex MP told ITV Anglia: 'I am definitely an Essex girl, that is a fact.' A London Assembly member before she took her Commons seat in 2017, Mrs Badenoch said: 'I represent an Essex constituency, these are my people. 'I was a Londoner, but Essex people asked me to be their MP, and I want to make sure that I do them proud. And I love this part of the world. 'It's fantastic being here. It's a rural community, and I've been talking to the farmers here. I talked about how my grandfather was a farmer, it's very hard work. 'The people of Essex and East Anglia – they are grafters. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch sits in the cab of a combine harvester (Stefan Rousseau/PA) 'They work hard, and I want to make sure that we do right by them.' Mrs Badenoch spent Tuesday morning at a farm in Little Walden, where she tried her hand at harvesting wheat using a Claas Lexion combine harvester. She told farmers: 'A lot of farming just feels like constant interference. 'Everything is interfered from the minute you wake up.' Examples of interference included 'chemicals and insecticide, people you're hiring, how much you've got to pay them', plus changes to 'employers' NI (national insurance), then somebody wants to put pylons on, there's compulsory purchase, it's impacting the cost of the land, if you want to add a new farm building, there's planning applications', she said. 'It's just endless constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards'. 'And the burden in my view has now crossed the threshold.'
