Latest news with #LewisQuigg
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Council demands statutory child sex abuse inquiry
Councillors in Oldham have voted unanimously to demand a statutory public inquiry into child sexual exploitation in the town, months after a government-led inquiry was turned down by ministers. An extraordinary meeting of Oldham Council was called by Oldham's Conservative Group, who said a judge-led review would have more power than the currently planned local inquiry. Safeguarding minster Jess Phillips previously argued that locally led inquiries, like a similar one held in Telford, were more effective at leading to change. The motion calling for a statutory inquiry, which would compel witnesses to give evidence, was passed to applause from the public gallery, with some exclaiming: "Finally." The BBC has asked the Home Office for a response. Conservative Councillor Lewis Quigg, who proposed the motion, said a judge-led statutory inquiry was required to "right an incredible wrong". "It's about time that the lid is lifted on this disaster, this national scandal of children who have been abused in some of the most evil acts." Leader of the local Conservative group, Councillor David Arnott, said the issue had "hung over this borough for far too long" and added that the council had "failed many times to stop horrific abuses continuing for years". The vote came after a lengthy and jumbled debate with multiple amendments to the motion, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. These included changes in language to avoid retraumatising survivors, a commitment to putting victims' voices at the centre of any new inquiry and a call for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to lend its voice to the call for statutory powers. Councillors also discussed the singling out of men with Pakistani heritage within the original motion, with Liberal Democrat Councillor Helen Bishop arguing that it was "too narrow a focus" which could put people at risk of "not recognising predators within other communities". In Telford, the inquiry found up to 1,000 girls faced abuse over 40 years, with some cases overlooked due to "nervousness about race" as most suspects were men of south Asian heritage. A major report published in 2022, which examined the way child sexual exploitation was tackled in Oldham between 2011 and 2014, found children in the town had been failed by Greater Manchester Police and Oldham Council. But investigators found no evidence of a cover up of grooming gangs. Oldham Group Councillor Abdul Wahid said justice "must prevail", adding that "even one predator in our community is one too many". "That's why we will do what we must here and within our communities to root out these criminals, who have tarnished the good name of British Pakistani Muslims across the country," he said. "But let me be absolutely clear: this is not just about one community. "It has been carried out by organised criminals of different backgrounds and covered up by communities and institutions of all ethnicities. "The victims were failed by police who ignored them, social services who dismissed them and politicians who looked away." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer. Oldham abuse survivors criticise government over inquiry decision Abuse survivor wants government Oldham inquiry Leaders unite to back child abuse inquiry call Oldham Council
BBC News
13-02-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Oldham Council demands statutory public inquiry into child sex abuse in town
Councillors in Oldham have voted unanimously to demand a statutory public inquiry into child sexual exploitation in the town, months after a government-led inquiry was turned down by ministers. An extraordinary meeting of Oldham Council was called by Oldham's Conservative Group, who said a judge-led review would have more power than the currently planned local inquiry. Safeguarding minster Jess Phillips previously argued that locally led inquiries, like a similar one held in Telford, were more effective at leading to motion calling for a statutory inquiry, which would compel witnesses to give evidence, was passed to applause from the public gallery, with some exclaiming: "Finally." The BBC has asked the Home Office for a Councillor Lewis Quigg, who proposed the motion, said a judge-led statutory inquiry was required to "right an incredible wrong". "It's about time that the lid is lifted on this disaster, this national scandal of children who have been abused in some of the most evil acts."Leader of the local Conservative group, Councillor David Arnott, said the issue had "hung over this borough for far too long" and added that the council had "failed many times to stop horrific abuses continuing for years".The vote came after a lengthy and jumbled debate with multiple amendments to the motion, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. These included changes in language to avoid retraumatising survivors, a commitment to putting victims' voices at the centre of any new inquiry and a call for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to lend its voice to the call for statutory also discussed the singling out of men with Pakistani heritage within the original motion, with Liberal Democrat Councillor Helen Bishop arguing that it was "too narrow a focus" which could put people at risk of "not recognising predators within other communities". 'All ethnicities ' In Telford, the inquiry found up to 1,000 girls faced abuse over 40 years, with some cases overlooked due to "nervousness about race" as most suspects were men of south Asian heritage.A major report published in 2022, which examined the way child sexual exploitation was tackled in Oldham between 2011 and 2014, found children in the town had been failed by Greater Manchester Police and Oldham investigators found no evidence of a cover up of grooming gangs. Oldham Group Councillor Abdul Wahid said justice "must prevail", adding that "even one predator in our community is one too many"."That's why we will do what we must here and within our communities to root out these criminals, who have tarnished the good name of British Pakistani Muslims across the country," he said."But let me be absolutely clear: this is not just about one community. "It has been carried out by organised criminals of different backgrounds and covered up by communities and institutions of all ethnicities. "The victims were failed by police who ignored them, social services who dismissed them and politicians who looked away." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Finally!': Oldham to demand public inquiry into 'scourge' that has ‘hung over borough for far too long'
Oldham Council will demand a statutory public inquiry into 'the scourge of child sexual exploitation both historic and current', following an extraordinary meeting of the authority. A judge-backed review would give the council more power to demand evidence from governmental institutions than what has been described as a 'Telford-style' local inquiry currently planned for the borough. The decision comes just three months after a previous request for a government-led review was rejected by the home secretary, sparking a major public backlash. READ MORE: Woman arrested on suspicion of child neglect after baby rushed to hospital in Middleton READ MORE: 'I'll f*****g kill you': Mum batters rival parent in brutal attack outside school gates Councillors unanimously voted for the inquiry at an extraordinary meeting, called by Oldham's Conservative Group tonight (February 12). Councillor Lewis Quigg, who proposed the motion, said: 'This national public inquiry is to right an incredible wrong. It's about time that the lid is lifted on this disaster, this national scandal of children who have been abused in some of the most evil acts.' Councillor David Arnott added the issue had 'hung over this borough for far too long' and that the council had 'failed many times to stop horrific abuses continuing for years'. The vote came after a lengthy and jumbled debate. Multiple amendments to the motion eventually left councillors confused about what they were voting for, causing members of the public to burst into laughter while others left the room. After a 30 minute adjournment, a new 'hybrid' version of the motion blended two amendments together. These included changes in language to avoid retraumatising survivors and victims of CSE, a commitment to putting victims' voices at the centre of any new inquiry and calling upon the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to lend their voice to the call for statutory powers. Councillors also discussed the singling out of men with Pakistani heritage within the original motion, with Lib Dem Coun Helen Bishop arguing that it was 'too narrow a focus' which could put people at risk of 'not recognising predators within other communities'. Coun Abdul Wahid, of the Oldham Group, added: 'Justice must prevail. We as British Pakistani Muslims are not interested in statistics. Even one predator in our community is one too many. That's why we will do what we must here and within our communities to root out these criminals, who have tarnished the good name of British Pakistani Muslims across the country. 'But let me be absolutely clear: this is not just about one community. Child Sexual Exploitation has plagued villages, towns and cities across the UK. It has been carried out by organised criminals of different backgrounds and covered up by communities and institutions of all ethnicities. The victims were failed by police who ignored them, social services who dismissed them and politicians who looked away.' The motion was passed to applause from the public gallery, with some exclaiming: 'Finally!'.
