Latest news with #MuslimLabour
South Wales Argus
6 hours ago
- Politics
- South Wales Argus
Televise grooming gang inquiry given public interest, Labour peer urges
Broadcaster Baroness Hazarika, who was previously a political adviser to former prime minister Gordon Brown, Baroness Harman and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, also called for a two-year time limit on the probe, arguing that 'justice delayed is justice denied'. Speaking in Parliament, the Muslim Labour peer again apologised for the crimes carried out by 'wicked, wicked men' and said many in her community felt 'deeply ashamed'. Responding, Home Office minister Lord Hanson of Flint also said he would like to see the inquiry 'speeded up', but this would be subject to discussion with the chairperson, which the Government was looking to swiftly recruit. The full-scale investigation was announced by the Prime Minister following a major review by Baroness Casey into grooming gangs, leading to accusations of a U-turn by Tory critics. Her report, published on Monday, found the ethnicity of perpetrators had been 'shied away from', with data not recorded for two-thirds of offenders. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper claimed officials had dodged the issue of ethnicity among the groups of sex offenders for fear of being called racist, even though available data showed suspects were disproportionately likely to be Asian men. Labour peer and broadcaster Baroness Hazarika was previously a political adviser to former prime minister Gordon Brown, Baroness Harman and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband (Alamy/PA) Lord Hanson told peers on Wednesday: 'The Government is determined to root out the horrific crimes of grooming gangs and secure justice for victims.' He pointed out all 12 recommendations made by Lady Casey had been accepted by the administration, including the establishment of a national probe. The minister added: 'The inquiry will be time limited, have statutory powers to direct targeted investigations into local areas with the aim of holding institutions to account for current and historic failures in their response to group-based child sexual exploitation.' Lady Hazarika said: 'I welcome this inquiry. And I just wanted to say that, as a Muslim woman, I want to profoundly apologise for what these wicked, wicked men have done to white working class girls. 'Many of us feel deeply ashamed, and let's not call them grooming gangs. These are rape gangs which operated on an industrial level. 'I hope the inquiry will also hear the voices of Muslim girls who were also abused by these animals.' She added: 'The minister talks about a time limit. Could the inquiry be capped at two years because justice delayed is justice denied? 'Given the public interest, can this inquiry be televised? 'And finally, given the incredible work that Baroness Casey has done, can she be appointed the chair? Because in a world of appalling systemic failure, she is the only public figure that many victims trust.' Lord Hanson said: 'She asks about the timescale for the inquiry, Baroness Casey has indicated it would be around three years. I would like to see it speeded up, but we have to discuss that matter with the potential chair of the inquiry. 'And the Government intends to try to recruit the potential chair of the inquiry as a matter of some speed, and we are in the process of doing that now. 'Baroness Casey herself is currently now going to be engaged in a further report, but we will appoint a chair as soon as possible.' He added: 'As to the matter of televising the proceedings, again if she will bear with me, that again will be a matter of discussion with the chair to determine. 'We want to ensure that we take action speedily on this issue.' He pointed out other recommendation made by Lady Casey would be implemented 'in very short order'. These included making it mandatory to collect ethnicity and nationality data of all suspects in child sexual abuse cases, a change in the law so that all adult sex with under-16s was considered rape, and a review of the criminal records of exploitation victims.
Rhyl Journal
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Televise grooming gang inquiry given public interest, Labour peer urges
Broadcaster Baroness Hazarika, who was previously a political adviser to former prime minister Gordon Brown, Baroness Harman and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, also called for a two-year time limit on the probe, arguing that 'justice delayed is justice denied'. Speaking in Parliament, the Muslim Labour peer again apologised for the crimes carried out by 'wicked, wicked men' and said many in her community felt 'deeply ashamed'. Responding, Home Office minister Lord Hanson of Flint also said he would like to see the inquiry 'speeded up', but this would be subject to discussion with the chairperson, which the Government was looking to swiftly recruit. The full-scale investigation was announced by the Prime Minister following a major review by Baroness Casey into grooming gangs, leading to accusations of a U-turn by Tory critics. Her report, published on Monday, found the ethnicity of perpetrators had been 'shied away from', with data not recorded for two-thirds of offenders. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper claimed officials had dodged the issue of ethnicity among the groups of sex offenders for fear of being called racist, even though available data showed suspects were disproportionately likely to be Asian men. Lord Hanson told peers on Wednesday: 'The Government is determined to root out the horrific crimes of grooming gangs and secure justice for victims.' He pointed out all 12 recommendations made by Lady Casey had been accepted by the administration, including the establishment of a national probe. The minister added: 'The inquiry will be time limited, have statutory powers to direct targeted investigations into local areas with the aim of holding institutions to account for current and historic failures in their response to group-based child sexual exploitation.' Lady Hazarika said: 'I welcome this inquiry. And I just wanted to say that, as a Muslim woman, I want to profoundly apologise for what these wicked, wicked men have done to white working class girls. 'Many of us feel deeply ashamed, and let's not call them grooming gangs. These are rape gangs which operated on an industrial level. 'I hope the inquiry will also hear the voices of Muslim girls who were also abused by these animals.' She added: 'The minister talks about a time limit. Could the inquiry be capped at two years because justice delayed is justice denied? 'Given the public interest, can this inquiry be televised? 'And finally, given the incredible work that Baroness Casey has done, can she be appointed the chair? Because in a world of appalling systemic failure, she is the only public figure that many victims trust.' Lord Hanson said: 'She asks about the timescale for the inquiry, Baroness Casey has indicated it would be around three years. I would like to see it speeded up, but we have to discuss that matter with the potential chair of the inquiry. 'And the Government intends to try to recruit the potential chair of the inquiry as a matter of some speed, and we are in the process of doing that now. 'Baroness Casey herself is currently now going to be engaged in a further report, but we will appoint a chair as soon as possible.' He added: 'As to the matter of televising the proceedings, again if she will bear with me, that again will be a matter of discussion with the chair to determine. 'We want to ensure that we take action speedily on this issue.' He pointed out other recommendation made by Lady Casey would be implemented 'in very short order'. These included making it mandatory to collect ethnicity and nationality data of all suspects in child sexual abuse cases, a change in the law so that all adult sex with under-16s was considered rape, and a review of the criminal records of exploitation victims.
Western Telegraph
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Western Telegraph
Televise grooming gang inquiry given public interest, Labour peer urges
Broadcaster Baroness Hazarika, who was previously a political adviser to former prime minister Gordon Brown, Baroness Harman and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, also called for a two-year time limit on the probe, arguing that 'justice delayed is justice denied'. Speaking in Parliament, the Muslim Labour peer again apologised for the crimes carried out by 'wicked, wicked men' and said many in her community felt 'deeply ashamed'. Responding, Home Office minister Lord Hanson of Flint also said he would like to see the inquiry 'speeded up', but this would be subject to discussion with the chairperson, which the Government was looking to swiftly recruit. The full-scale investigation was announced by the Prime Minister following a major review by Baroness Casey into grooming gangs, leading to accusations of a U-turn by Tory critics. Her report, published on Monday, found the ethnicity of perpetrators had been 'shied away from', with data not recorded for two-thirds of offenders. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper claimed officials had dodged the issue of ethnicity among the groups of sex offenders for fear of being called racist, even though available data showed suspects were disproportionately likely to be Asian men. Labour peer and broadcaster Baroness Hazarika was previously a political adviser to former prime minister Gordon Brown, Baroness Harman and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband (Alamy/PA) Lord Hanson told peers on Wednesday: 'The Government is determined to root out the horrific crimes of grooming gangs and secure justice for victims.' He pointed out all 12 recommendations made by Lady Casey had been accepted by the administration, including the establishment of a national probe. The minister added: 'The inquiry will be time limited, have statutory powers to direct targeted investigations into local areas with the aim of holding institutions to account for current and historic failures in their response to group-based child sexual exploitation.' Lady Hazarika said: 'I welcome this inquiry. And I just wanted to say that, as a Muslim woman, I want to profoundly apologise for what these wicked, wicked men have done to white working class girls. 'Many of us feel deeply ashamed, and let's not call them grooming gangs. These are rape gangs which operated on an industrial level. 'I hope the inquiry will also hear the voices of Muslim girls who were also abused by these animals.' She added: 'The minister talks about a time limit. Could the inquiry be capped at two years because justice delayed is justice denied? 'Given the public interest, can this inquiry be televised? 'And finally, given the incredible work that Baroness Casey has done, can she be appointed the chair? Because in a world of appalling systemic failure, she is the only public figure that many victims trust.' Lord Hanson said: 'She asks about the timescale for the inquiry, Baroness Casey has indicated it would be around three years. I would like to see it speeded up, but we have to discuss that matter with the potential chair of the inquiry. 'And the Government intends to try to recruit the potential chair of the inquiry as a matter of some speed, and we are in the process of doing that now. 'Baroness Casey herself is currently now going to be engaged in a further report, but we will appoint a chair as soon as possible.' He added: 'As to the matter of televising the proceedings, again if she will bear with me, that again will be a matter of discussion with the chair to determine. 'We want to ensure that we take action speedily on this issue.' He pointed out other recommendation made by Lady Casey would be implemented 'in very short order'. These included making it mandatory to collect ethnicity and nationality data of all suspects in child sexual abuse cases, a change in the law so that all adult sex with under-16s was considered rape, and a review of the criminal records of exploitation victims.
Middle East Eye
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Starmer has handled Gaza 'badly' say four in five elected Labour Muslim representatives
A major survey has revealed that 82 percent of Britain's Muslim Labour MPs, councillors and mayors believe Prime Minister Keir Starmer has handled Israel's war on Gaza "badly". The poll of over 220 elected Muslim representatives by the Labour Muslim Network (LMN) reveals that two-thirds do not believe Muslim representatives are treated equally to others in the Labour party. Most of them - 64 percent - believe Labour operates a "hierarchy of racism". The findings, released on Thursday, indicate widespread discontent among Muslim Labour representatives over the party's handling of Islamophobia - and a dramatic disjuncture between their views and the Labour government's policy on Israel. Findings revealed 82 percent of Muslim Labour representatives support sanctions against Israel. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters And 97 percent support immediately recognising the state of Palestine, which the government is rumoured to be gearing up to do at a UN conference later this month. The study also shows that one in three Muslim Labour representatives have directly experienced Islamophobia within Labour and believe the party is institutionally Islamophobic. Some 53 percent say Labour does not take Islamophobia seriously, while 58 percent believe the Labour government has "represented Muslims badly". Muslims treated 'fundamentally differently' "This new groundbreaking research confirms what many Muslim representatives have been telling us for many years: Muslims in the Labour Party are fundamentally treated differently," the LMN said. "The Labour Muslim Network presents this report as a call to action. "A renewed commitment to Muslim representation, rooted in equality and justice. "The Party must urgently address the structural issues identified in this report or face the moral and political consequences to come." Exclusive: US warns UK and France not to recognise Palestinian state Read More » Significantly, the survey reveals widespread opposition to the government's policy of non-engagement with the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), with 83 percent of Labour Muslim representatives saying Labour must end its boycott. Consecutive governments have followed a policy of refusing to engage with the MCB - despite it having over 500 member organisations, including mosques, schools, local and county councils, professional networks and advocacy groups. Starmer's government adopted this approach and even ignored communications from the MCB during the far-right riots that raged across the country for over a week last August. "Our Labour Party cannot credibly claim to be an anti-racist movement while ignoring the testimonies and experiences of its own Muslim elected officials," the LMN said. "We cannot rebuild trust with Muslim communities while continuing to boycott Muslim institutions, or while punishing representatives who speak out on international law and justice." A Labour party spokesperson said: "The Labour Party is proud of the diversity of our party, including the increase in the number of Muslim MPs in the Parliamentary Labour Party and having the first Muslim Lord Chancellor in Shabana Mahmood, and the first Muslim Mayor of London in Sadiq Khan. "We take any complaints of discrimination, including Islamophobia, seriously. All complaints are assessed in line with our complaints policies and procedures through our independent complaints system."
