Starmer attacks Badenoch over call for new inquiry into sexual abuse gangs
Keir Starmer has accused Kemi Badenoch of “bandwagon jumping” in calling for a new inquiry into sexual abuse gangs, as he condemned the Conservative leader for her plan to try to vote down a bill on children’s wellbeing.In sometimes bitter exchanges at prime minister’s questions, as the topic of grooming gangs continued to dominate the political agenda, Starmer accused Badenoch of only taking an interest in the subject after Elon Musk repeatedly tweeted about it.“She met her recently acquired view that it’s a scandal, having spent a lot of time on social media over Christmas,” the prime minister told the Conservative leader.“Not once in eight years did she stand here and say what she just said.”Starmer accused Badenoch, who had said resisting a new inquiry would spark speculation about a “cover-up” in government, of being more interested in “tweeting and talking” than taking action on behalf of victims.
Noting that Badenoch had been children’s minister among other roles in the last government, Starmer said he was not aware of the Tory leader having previously raised in the Commons the subject of sexual abuse gangs.“It’s only in recent days she’s jumped on the bandwagon,” he said.“If I’m wrong about that, and she has raised it, then I invite her to say that now, and I will happily withdraw the remark.”Badenoch responded by saying she had “raised it in speeches”, and that as she was not a Home Office minister, she would not have addressed it in the Commons.Badenoch’s call for a new inquiry at PMQs comes before a vote in the Commons in which the Conservatives will try to force an inquiry using an amendment to the children’s wellbeing and schools bill, which will be given its second reading on Wednesday.
Badenoch rejected Starmer’s argument that another national inquiry, after the report by Prof Alexis Jay, published in 2022, would merely delay the implementation of Jay’s recommendations.“It is very possible to have actions, take on more, and still have a national inquiry,” she said.“So why won’t he listen to victims and launch a national inquiry which would have the power to summon witnesses and make them give evidence under oath?”Starmer replied by saying that he had met some survivors of grooming gangs earlier on Wednesday, and that they had told him they would rather have swift action rather than another inquiry.While saying he accepted that other survivors of the abuse took different views, Starmer angrily condemned the planned amendment, which would stop the progress of the entire children’s wellbeing and schools bill.Sign up to First EditionOur morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it mattersafter newsletter promotionWhile some of the bill is concerned with areas such as academy chains and school uniforms, it also seeks to tighten up some areas of child welfare, such as no longer automatically allowing parents to home-school a child if the child is subject to a child protection plan.
Starmer said this provision could help prevent cases like that of 10-year-old Sara Sharif, who had been taken out of formal schooling before she was murdered by her father and stepmother,Starmer said he could not understand why Tory MPs would try to vote down a bill that would “protect children who are vulnerable”, adding: “I implore them, vote for the bill,”Badenoch hit back, saying Starmer was ordering Labour MPs in towns and cities affected by grooming gangs to vote against an inquiry into “one of the worst scandals in British history”,She added: “How are they going to explain to their constituents that obeying his whip is more important than doing the right thing?”
Parents in Welsh county told to come to school to change nappies if their child is not toilet trained
Parents in Blaenau Gwent, Wales have been told they have to come to school to change nappies if their children are not toilet trained.The local authority told parents that it was their responsibility to ensure children knew how to use a toilet before sending them to school.A new policy, implemented by Blaenau Gwent council, means teachers will no longer change pupils’ nappies or pull-ups unless there is a “medically recognised need”.The council said: “It is a parent/carer’s responsibility to ensure their child is toilet trained, however based on data collection from schools on their experience of very high levels of pupils coming to school in nappies we have introduced this policy.“The policy states that parents will be expected to go to school to change their child’s nappies/pull-ups
Does UK need another national inquiry into rape and sexual abuse gangs?
The Elon Musk-instigated argument over whether the UK needs another national inquiry into rape and sexual abuse gangs reached the Commons on Wednesday, with the Conservatives pushing an amendment that would set up such a process, while at the same time torpedoing a wider government bill on schools and child welfare.Below are four claims being made about this much-contested subject, and what we actually know to be the case.The claim: The idea that the scale of “grooming gangs” was not just neglected as an issue but actively covered up has been a common charge not just by the likes of Reform UK, but also the Conservatives on occasions. At prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, Kemi Badenoch said Keir Starmer’s refusal to order another national inquiry could mean “people will start to worry about a cover-up”.The reality: This is to a great extent a value judgment
The care taskforce needs boldness, not buzzwords | Letters
The announcement of a new commission on social care has been met with an audible sigh from commentators, family carers and people needing care and support (Ministers plan biggest shake-up of adult social care in England for decades, 3 January). We’ve all been here before, built up expectations of reform and dared to hope things would change, only to face disappointment through the inaction of successive governments. There is little to inspire confidence that this time will be different. But could it be?The appointment of Louise Casey to chair the commission is to be welcomed – she has a track record of cutting through the weeds and delivering unequivocal conclusions and recommendations. But it’s a massive challenge given the repeated failures of past commissions and policy endeavour
Tell us how you have been affected by the winter flu crisis in England
The rise in people with flu being admitted to hospital in England quadrupled last month with at least a dozen hospitals declaring critical incidents. Other pressures on the NHS include Covid, norovirus and chronic issues such as a lack of available beds.Health services issue critical incident declarations when their services become so overwhelmed they struggle to deliver critical services, risking patient safety. Hospitals in Birmingham, Cornwall, Hampshire, Liverpool, Northamptonshire and Plymouth are among those affected.We want to hear from patients who have experienced flu this winter and what it has been like getting treatment
‘Get this done’: Andrew Dilnot attacks three-year plan for English social care
Downing Street’s plan to spend three years preparing a blueprint to overhaul England’s social care is “inappropriate” given the urgency of the crisis facing frail, ill and disabled people, a leading care expert has told MPs.Sir Andrew Dilnot, the architect of previous government-commissioned attempts to reform adult social care funding, said that with clear backing from Keir Starmer, new plans could feasibly be in place by the end of the year.“I think it’s so blindingly – excuse my language – bleedin’ obvious that something should be done here, that, in the end, in an intelligent, affluent, civilised society, we get this done,” Dilnot said.Appearing before the Commons health and social care committee on Wednesday, he urged ministers to speed up the reform process: “I think it’s perfectly, perfectly feasible for the government to expect … by the end of 2025, to say: ‘Actually, we know what needs to be done, this is what we’re going to do.’”He added that he thought reform would not happen unless the proposed changes received political backing from the very top – and he urged the prime minister to “get behind” the changes
What is driving the winter flu crisis in England?
At least a dozen hospitals have declared critical incidents as the rise in flu admissions and respiratory illnesses has led to “exceptionally high demands”.Health services issue critical incident declarations when their services become so overwhelmed they struggle to deliver critical services, risking patient safety. Hospitals in Birmingham, Cornwall, Hampshire, Liverpool, Northamptonshire and Plymouth are among those affected, after figures reveal the number of people admitted to hospital in England with flu quadrupled last month.We take a look at what is driving the crisis, and whether the situation is likely to be repeated next winter.Data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) suggests flu levels and hospital admissions are higher than this time last year
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