The horrific reality of the rape and grooming gangs which have terrorised dozens of communities across Britain is the single worst stain on our nation in living memory. For decades, many in local government, the police, and care services ignored these crimes, either turning a blind eye or actively refusing to speak out for fear of being labelled racist.
After all, as the Government’s own initial report into this issue makes abundantly clear, the victims were mostly white girls, and the perpetrators were mostly Pakistani men. For many in the British state, the suffering of these children was the price worth paying to avoid an awkward conversation.
It can often be difficult to fully grasp the scale of these crimes, and the sheer number of children who fell victim to the horrific acts of these vile men.
An estimated 1,400 children were groomed and raped by gangs in Rotherham alone, one of at least 50 towns across the country where gangs operated (and many likely operate today).
It’s only because of the bravery of countless victims, whistleblowers, and journalists that we know the truth about these crimes at all.
For those who’ve spoken out about these horrors, the Government’s announcement of a national inquiry earlier this year represented a big step towards truth and justice.
Unfortunately, last week’s report from the police watchdog, the IOPC, suggests that real justice is still some way away.
The watchdog upheld a complaint that senior officers at South Yorkshire Police failed in their duty to protect children in Rotherham throughout the grooming gang scandal.
That much should already have been obvious, given what we know about the failure of the police to take action.
Yet despite finding that senior offices had totally failed to protect children in Rotherham, the watchdog also said that there was “no indication” that they may have committed a criminal offence, and didn’t recommend any further disciplinary proceedings.
According to the IOPC, because the failure was “organisational” and “collective”, it’s impossible to identify a single named individual who ought to be held accountable.
This is clearly absurd. How can it be that the IOPC is able to identify a “collective failure” amongst senior police officers in Rotherham, but is totally unable to identify any individual wrongdoing?
Institutions like the police are, fundamentally, made up of individuals. The idea that it’s possible for institutions to fail collectively, without any individual wrongdoing, is as insulting as it is ludicrous.
For many victims, this will be yet another chilling indication that the British state is not serious about delivering justice.
Clearly, we need to do much more to take action against those who committed these crimes.
Under the last Government, Suella Braverman established the Grooming Gangs Taskforce, which has been responsible for making over 1,000 arrests.
Although, even where the authorities have taken action, the sentences that these men receive are often shockingly short.
But there can be no true justice for the victims of the rape gangs until the Government also takes action against those who covered up these crimes.
Those who ignored these girls, smeared them, or actively worked to prevent further investigation, should face the full force of the law. So far, not a single person has been convicted for their role in the cover-up.
If victims are ever to know true justice, that must change.
There’s already an offence on the statute books which would allow the Government to take action against those responsible for the cover-up.
It’s called ‘misconduct in public office’, and it carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
If the ‘collective failure’ of police officers in Rotherham doesn’t clear the bar for ‘misconduct in public office’, it’s hard to imagine what could.
