A Conservative MP has warned that the number of child abuse victims in the Bradford area could “dwarf” the scale seen in other grooming gang scandals.
Robbie Moore, who is MP forKeighley and Ilkley, made the claim whilst discussing a dossier he compiled with child abuse lawyer David Greenwood.
Speaking to GB News, the MP said: “[The dossier] is to illustrate the concern around the scale of the potential issue across the Bradford district.
“I’ve consistently been saying that I fear that the number of children that have been at risk and that are at risk from child sexual exploitation across Keighley and the wider Bradford district will be significant, and dwarf that of Rotherham, Telford and Oldham.
Robbie Moore said that the numbers could be much higher than expected
GB NEWS
“Working with David Greenwood, who is an expert child abuse lawyer, we put together this dossier so that we could present it to the Home Office and the wider media to demonstrate our concern around the level and the scale of the problem.
“[Ministers] are in listening mode. But to be frank, I’m fed up with being told that we’re in listening mode.
“We’ve had that consistently for far, far too long, and that is not reassuring those victims and those survivors.
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“We’ve had the announcement now that there will be a national inquiry, but the detail absolutely needs to be thrashed out.
“We don’t know what those terms of reference are. We don’t know who will be the chair of that independent inquiry that’s going to be taking place.
“And we don’t even know whether areas like Bradford or Keighley, that I’ve been advocating for so long, will even be included.”
The grooming gang scandal has faced institutional resistance for years.
In a GB News interview earlier today, Lord Michael Gove revealed that Whitehall officials attempted to prevent journalists from publishing investigations into abuse in Rotherham in 2011.
WATCH: Michael Gove speaks to GB News about attempted Whitehall cover-up of grooming gangs
Explaining his frustration, Moore added: “It feels like we’re back – almost – to the position of having to keep the pressure on the likes of Bradford to have that spotlight shone on it.
“Not only has [an investigation] been consistently objected to, but there was even a motion at Bradford council put forward by the Conservative group leader, Councillor Rebecca Poulsen, and then it was voted down by all of the Labour councillors.
“Now to me, party politics should absolutely not get in the way here. This is the difference between right and wrong.
“But as a matter of fact, we have seen the leader of Bradford Council, Susan Hinchcliffe, consistently say that there we would learn nothing new in the Bradford district from having any more of an additional spotlight shone on it through having a local inquiry.
“She has also said that it would be too expensive, but that’s despite Government giving the reassurance that money would be allocated from a national level.
“So the challenge that I have always had since being a Member of Parliament is local councils like Bradford saying, ‘nothing to see here, it’s a national problem.’ And then nationally, Government is effectively saying ‘it’s a local issue’.”
Charlie Peters speaking to a grooming gang victim
GB News
He added: “I have the utmost respect for Baroness Casey and Professor Alexis Jay and the work that they have been doing, whether it be IICSA or through the Casey report. How embarrassing is it that the Government, in my view, have been forced into taking this position.
“And that is incredibly frustrating that it has taken so long for a report to push them into making this decision.
“People like the likes of leaders of local authorities, or, dare I say, police forces, are justifying their position by referring to how many prosecutions have taken place, or how many years have followed through those prosecutions.
“But yet, we know that only about 50 per cent roughly, of those that have had some sort of child sexual exploitation incident taking place against them are likely to come forward.
“And that’s only through feeling confident enough to do so, and therefore, there are a lot of cases that will not be explored.
“So the point here is the scale has not been addressed, and therefore that’s why an inquiry needs to happen.”