Child sexual abuse inquiry chair urges government to act

Prof Alexis Jay, the former chair of a national inquiry into child sexual abuse, has called for the "full implementation" of reforms set out in her 2022 report, which warned of "endemic" abuse across society in England and Wales.

A campaign group chaired by Prof Jay, called Act on IICSA, said ministers must commit to a "clear timeline" to adopt the recommendations laid out by the Independent Inquiry Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA). The government says it supports the changes.

The group warned against "politicising" sexual violence and pushed back against "misinformation".

Prof Jay also distanced herself from calls from the Conservatives and Reform UK for a new inquiry into grooming gangs.

The IICSA national inquiry was set up in 2015 and carried out 15 investigations, including into grooming gangs and abuse in schools and church settings.

Prof Jay had previously led a landmark local inquiry into widescale abuse in Rotherham, where it was estimated 1,400 children were exploited between 1997 and 2013, predominantly by men of Pakistani heritage.

The IICSA's final report was published in 2022 and set out 20 recommendations it said were necessary to reduce child suffering.

They included setting up a national child protection authority, implementing tighter controls on who can work with vulnerable children, legislating to force tech firms to take stronger action over online abuse material and making not reporting abuse a criminal offence.

In a statement issued on Sunday, Act on IICSA said: "Politicising the issue of sexual violence fails to acknowledge its lifelong impact and hinders the implementation of vital and urgent overhaul to our systems required."

Prof Jay said: "Our mission is not to call for new inquiries but to advocate for the full implementation of IICSA's recommendations."

She has previously said she was "frustrated" at the previous Conservative government's lack of progress in adopting the recommendations, and described its response as "weak", which the Home Office disputed at the time.

On Sunday, Act on IICSA also said recent media coverage of child sexual abuse has highlighted a "troubling trend of misinformation that undermines the true scale of the crisis and the pressing need for reform".

Speaking on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the government was prioritising "getting on with" implementing the recommendations.

Prof Jay's comments came after Tory leader Kemi Badenoch called for a national public inquiry into the UK's "rape gangs scandal" on Thursday, which Reform leader Nigel Farage also supports.

The issue of grooming gangs was put back in the spotlight after Home Office minister Jess Phillips rejected Oldham Council's request for a government-led inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation in the town, in favour of a locally-led investigation.

That decision was criticised by senior Tory and Reform figures, while billionaire Elon Musk also fuelled online anger over the move in a series of posts on social media.