😔 Tackling Child Sexual Abuse

• Government Action and Progress: Jess Phillips, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, updated the House on the government’s efforts to combat child sexual abuse and exploitation. She highlighted the establishment of a grooming gangs taskforce, which has led to 550 arrests in its first year and 597 arrests in the last nine months of 2024.

• Scale of the Problem: Phillips noted that approximately 500,000 children are sexually abused each year, with 115,000 recorded cases in 2023. She also mentioned the involvement of group-based offences and family abuse in these statistics.

• New Initiatives: The government is introducing a new child sexual abuse police performance framework, legislation targeting online offending, new powers for Border Force to detect child sex abuse material, and restrictions on name changes for registered sex offenders. Additionally, there will be increased investment in law enforcement capabilities.

• Grooming Gangs and Local Inquiries: Baroness Casey’s national audit on group-based child sexual exploitation is ongoing, aiming to build a comprehensive national picture. A new best practice framework will support local authorities in conducting victim-centered inquiries. A £5 million national fund will be available to support locally-led work on grooming gangs.

• Review of Past Cases: The National Police Chiefs’ Council has been urged to re-examine investigations into group-based child sexual exploitation that resulted in “no further action” decisions. The Child Sexual Abuse Review Panel can now review cases post-2013.

• Support for Victims: The government plans to expand the independent child trafficking guardian scheme across England and Wales to provide direct support to more child victims of sexual exploitation and grooming.

• Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA): Phillips acknowledged the work of the IICSA, which ran from 2015 to 2022 and highlighted institutional failures in protecting children. The government is now setting out a detailed update and timetable for implementing IICSA’s recommendations.

• New Child Protection Authority: A new child protection authority will be established to provide national leadership and learning on child protection and safeguarding, addressing one of IICSA’s central recommendations.

• Mandatory Reporting: The government will introduce a new mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse, along with a criminal offence for obstructing such reports. This aims to create a culture of openness and honesty.

• Support and Justice for Victims: The government is tasking criminal justice joint inspectorates to review the experiences of victims in the criminal justice system and is working on improving access to therapeutic services for victims and survivors.

• Civil Claims and Compensation: The three-year limitation period on victims bringing personal injury claims in civil courts will be removed, and the burden of proof will shift from survivors to defendants.

• Opposition and Cross-Party Responses: Shadow Minister Katie Lam criticized the government’s progress on local inquiries into grooming gangs and questioned the lack of a national inquiry. Liberal Democrat and Labour MPs welcomed the government’s plans but urged for more comprehensive action and implementation of all IICSA recommendations.

• Focus on Sentencing and Support Services: There were calls for tougher sentencing for child sexual abuse crimes and concerns about funding cuts to support services for victims, with the government announcing a doubling of funding for national services supporting adult survivors.

The parliamentary session on Tackling Child Sexual Abuse displayed a moderate level of disagreement, primarily centered around political criticisms and specific policy implementations rather than outright opposition to the issue itself. Here are key points contributing to this rating:

1. Political Criticism and Blame: There was considerable criticism from opposition and backbench MPs towards the government’s perceived inaction and political handling of the issue. For example, Katie Lam (Conservative) criticized the government for not progressing with local inquiries and questioned the handling of inquiries, suggesting racial and religious elements in the crimes had been overlooked. Jess Phillips responded by pointing out the inclusivity of the statement towards all victims of child sexual abuse and criticized the opposition’s focus.

2. Policy Implementation Concerns: MPs questioned the specifics of the policy implementation, such as the framework for local inquiries, the allocation of the £5 million fund, and the establishment of a specialist unit in the National Crime Agency to investigate institutional cover-ups. There were also queries about the effectiveness of proposed mandatory reporting and skepticism about progress in various areas, like sentencing and support for victims.

3. Constructive Criticism and Suggestions: Some MPs, while supportive of the government’s efforts, made constructive suggestions and criticisms. For instance, Helen Hayes (Labour) asked for specific details about how mandatory reporting would function in practice and whether the thresholds for reporting were set correctly. There were also calls for enhanced funding and support services, despite overall support for the initiatives announced.

4. Cross-Party Agreement: There was agreement across parties on the necessity of stronger measures against child sexual abuse. The establishment of a new child protection authority, mandatory reporting, and increased funding for victim support were praised by MPs from different parties, indicating a general consensus on the urgency and importance of the issue.

5. Expression of Frustration: Some MPs, like Robbie Moore (Conservative), expressed frustration over perceived delays and lack of concrete action, specifically regarding local inquiries. This indicates a sense of urgency and dissatisfaction with the pace of progress.

While there was some disagreement about how the issue was being politicized and the implementation of specific policies, the overall session showed a shared commitment to addressing child sexual abuse. The disagreements were significant enough to warrant a rating of 3, as they required substantial discussion and defense from the minister, yet the underlying goal of protecting children and supporting victims was universally acknowledged.