Courts demand national probe into child gangs as Musk dives with Starmer

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The Conservatives have called for a national inquiry into child sex abuse, after Elon Musk accused Sir Keir Starmer of failing to bring gang rapes to justice when he was head of the prosecution. more than ten years ago.

The Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said on Thursday that a full investigation was “long overdue” into the scandal in northern England that first came to light in 2013.

“Attempts have taken place all over the country in recent years but no one in authority has joined the dots,” Badenoch told X, adding that 2025 must be the year “the victims start to get justice”.

Chris Philp and Alicia Kearns later wrote to home secretary Yvette Cooper demanding a national investigation. But they did not say why the Conservatives had not set up such an inquiry when they were in government.

A Labor spokesman said the party had already backed a national inquiry into reported child abuse by 2022, and independent local inquiries in certain cities.

“This government is working urgently to strengthen the law so that these crimes are properly reported and investigated,” the spokesperson added.

The row erupted after Musk made inflammatory allegations against Starmer about his role in prosecuting criminals in the scheme.

The tech billionaire has been critical of the British government in recent months, comparing it to Joseph Stalin’s Russia. He welcomed Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party last month supported Germany’s far-right AfD.

on Thursday, Musk he wrote on X, the website he owns: “In the UK, serious crimes such as rape require the consent of the Crown Prosecution Service for the police to prosecute suspects. Who was the head of CPS when gangs were allowed to prey on little girls without justice? Keir Starmer, 2008-2013.

However, it was Starmer, then director of public prosecutions from 2008 to 2013, who launched the prosecution of Rochdale’s behavior team in his last year in office, shortly after the city’s scandal of Greater Manchester was the first to appear.

In addition, Starmer initiated a change in the way the CPS investigates sexual abuse to ensure that more offenders are convicted. The reforms also paved the way for historical cases to be re-examined.

Musk said Defense Minister Jess Phillips was “refusing to investigate gang-rapes” in order to protect Starmer, following reports this week that the government had rejected Oldham Council’s request for an investigation led by the Office of the Home about child sexual abuse in the city.

Phillips said in a letter to local authorities that he believes it is for the council itself “to decide whether to investigate child sexual abuse in your area, rather than for the state to intervene”, according to GB News.

Officials confirmed it was the government’s view that local authorities were best placed to conduct local investigations, citing the example of investigations in Rotherham and Telford, other towns affected by gang-related child sexual abuse.

In addition, the watchdog responsible for policing in England and Wales, the Chief Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, is conducting an independent review into child sexual abuse in Greater Manchester, including the conduct of the police and 10. the courts do not deal with such cases.

The SpaceX founder also called for far-right activist Tommy Robinson – the founder of the English Defense League and former member of the British National party – to be released from prison, and again tweeted that he is “a prisoner political”.

Robinson, a convicted criminal whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was jailed for 18 months in October after pleading guilty to contempt of court by making false allegations about a Syrian refugee. .

Downing Street declined to comment on Musk’s outburst on Thursday, with one official saying the prime minister was focused on governing.

It was the latest in a series of attacks by the billionaire against Starmer, after calling him “tier Keir” during last summer’s riots, confirming a popular online theory that right-wing activists worse treatment by the police. ethnic minorities in the UK.

The Home Office said: “No child should be sexually abused or exploited. Everyone responsible for the welfare of children should learn from the mistakes of the past and do all they can to prevent future failures.”