Abuse scandal in Great Britain Starmer announces nationwide inquiry into grooming gangs
The British government is launching a second inquiry into sexual abuse by grooming gangs. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is responding to massive public pressure and criticism of previous failures by the authorities.
18.06.2025, 00:00
SDA
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- British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announces a second inquiry into sexual abuse by grooming gangs.
- Police and authorities have looked the other way for years - partly out of mistrust of the victims, partly out of fear of being seen as racist.
- Right-wing groups and personalities such as Elon Musk are using the issue to stir up public opinion.
The British government wants to order a second nationwide investigation into gang-related cases of sexual abuse. This was announced by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the weekend. The head of government had previously rejected corresponding demands from the opposition for months.
The case concerns the systematic and long-standing sexual abuse of vulnerable girls and women in various cities across the country by so-called grooming gangs. Men, often of Pakistani descent, have often made underage girls from difficult backgrounds submissive with alcohol and drugs or forced them to have sex and raped them.
Police and authorities looked the other way for a long time
The cases repeatedly made the headlines, partly because a conspicuous number of perpetrators came from Pakistan. The victims, on the other hand, mostly belonged to the majority population.
The main cause of outrage was that the police and authorities often remained inactive for a long time - partly because the victims were not believed and partly for fear of being seen as racist, as the first investigation revealed.
Patrick Wülser, correspondent for Great Britain, toldSRF: "It is clear that generalizations based on origin are racist. But to deliberately ignore and conceal this is also a mistake and not helpful for this population group."
Starmer had long ruled out an investigation
The issue is now being exploited by right-wing populists and right-wing extremists to stir up public opinion. It recently received a great deal of attention when US multi-billionaire Elon Musk publicly backed the call for a second investigation and also made unsubstantiated accusations with links to far-right conspiracy theories against Starmer and other Labour politicians.
Starmer had long ruled out a second inquiry. He argued that the recommendations of the first inquiry, which lasted seven years, had to be implemented first. However, this had been delayed by the previous Conservative government. However, a review has now come to the conclusion that a second investigation is necessary, he announced.
This is not about the criminal investigation, which is being carried out independently. Dozens of perpetrators have already been sentenced to long prison terms. The so-called inquiries are about political consequences.
