Starmer attacks those 'spreading lies' on grooming gangs

The prime minister has attacked politicians and activists "spreading lies and misinformation" over grooming gangs.

It comes after multi-billionaire Elon Musk accused Sir Keir Starmer of being "complicit in the rape of Britain" during his tenure as director of public prosecutions (DPP) between 2008 and 2013, for failing to tackle grooming gangs.

Alongside Musk's comments, senior Conservatives and Reform UK MPs have also spent the week calling for a national inquiry into child sexual exploitation.

But Sir Keir accused opposition MPs of "jumping on a bandwagon" and "amplifying what the far-right is saying" to gain attention.

Sir Keir said Labour was addressing child sexual abuse after Conservative inaction "for 14 long years".

Online debate around grooming gangs had now "crossed a line", resulting in threats against MPs, including Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips, he said.

"We have seen this playbook many times - whipping up of intimidation and of threats of violence, hoping that the media will amplify it," Sir Keir said.

"Those who are spreading lies and misinformation as far and as wide as possible are not interested in victims, they're interested in themselves," he added.

Debate around grooming gangs was reignited this week after it was reported that 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.

The decision was taken in October, but first reported by GB News on 1 January.

Conservative Leader Kemi Badenoch accused Sir Keir of using "smear tactics from 20 years ago" against those calling for a national inquiry.

"That such a huge scandal could occur should prompt soul-searching not ranting that those of us who care about it are 'the far-right'," Badenoch said.

Reporters were briefed Sir Keir planned a bold defence of his record and his government - and his comments were the most impassioned he has been in his time as prime minister.

Describing child sexual exploitation as "utterly sickening", Sir Keir defended his record in office as DPP, saying he tackled the issue "head on".

"I changed the system because I could see some of the things that were going wrong," he told reporters.

While DPP, Sir Keir introduced a special prosecutor for child abuse and sexual exploitation to oversee convictions; changed the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) guidance to encourage police to investigate suspects in complex sexual abuse cases and brought in court reforms aimed at making the process less traumatic for victims.

Sir Keir said he also reopened cases, brought the first prosecution of an "Asian grooming gang" in Rochdale and called for mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse.

"When I left office, we had the highest number of child sexual abuse cases being prosecuted on record," Sir Keir said.

"The victims here suffered terrible abuse," he said, "and then they weren't listened to."

Phillips had also "done a thousand times more" to protect victims of child sexual abuse than those attacking her can "even dreamt about", he said.

Sir Keir did not name any of those he thought were spreading lies in the debate, but his comments followed a series of questions about interventions by Musk.

Over the past week, the tech-entrepreneur has attacked the Labour government over grooming gangs - using his platform on his social media site X to accuse Phillips of being a "rape genocide apologist", and calling for her and Sir Keir to be jailed.

Musk's push to oust the PM could spark diplomatic trouble for Labour.

Alongside being one of the richest men in the world, Musk is also a key adviser for US President-elect Donald Trump.

Musk responded to Sir Keir's comments, calling him "utterly despicable".

In a series of posts on social media, Musk continued to attack Labour figures and the prime minister by name.

He also condemned what he saw as Sir Keir's description of demands for a national inquiry into grooming gangs as far-right activism - calling it "an insane thing to say".

After supporting Trump's successful campaign in the US election, Musk has recently shifted his attention to British and European politics - largely supporting insurgent right-wing movements.

In the UK he has backed Reform UK, despite recently falling out with its leader Nigel Farage, and has come out in support of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) ahead of a snap legislative election in the country next month.

Musk has also called for far-right activist Tommy Robinson to be released from jail.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is currently serving an 18-month prison sentence for contempt of court, after admitting he breached an injunction against repeating claims about a Syrian refugee schoolboy.

Sir Keir accused those "cheerleading" Robinson of not being interested in justice and said he would not tolerate discussion and debate on lies.

"Once we lose the anchor that truth matters, in the robust debate that we must have, then we're on a very slippery slope," he said.

The Liberal Democrats urged the government to "summon the US ambassador" to address Musk's comments, given his role in the next White House administration.

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said: "People have had enough of Elon Musk interfering with our country's democracy when he clearly knows nothing about Britain."

There have been numerous investigations into the systematic rape of young women by organised gangs, including in Rotherham, Cornwall, Derbyshire, Rochdale and Bristol.

Sir Keir admitted many of the victims had been "let down by perverse ideas about community relations or by the idea that institutions must be protected above all else and they have not been listened to and they have not been heard."

A Rotherham inquiry uncovered the sexual abuse of 1,400 children over 16 years, mainly by British Pakistani men.

In Telford, up to 1,000 girls faced abuse over 40 years, with some cases overlooked due to "nervousness about race" as most suspects were men of south Asian heritage.

The Conservatives and Reform UK have been calling for a statutory inquiry into grooming gangs.

Last week Badenoch said: "Trials have taken place all over the country in recent years but no one in authority has joined the dots. 2025 must be the year that the victims start to get justice."

But Sir Keir dismissed the calls, arguing the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) by Professor Alexis Jay, which concluded in October 2022, had been "comprehensive".

While he agreed that "no stone should be left unturned" to end child sexual abuse, Sir Keir insisted that "action" is now needed, not another review.

The government has previously said it wants to implement Prof Jay's recommendations, and on Monday evening Home Secretary Yvette Cooper set out action she would be taking on three of the report's proposals.

She told MPs a recommendation for those working with children to face mandatory requirements to report abuse would be enacted via an amendment to the upcoming Crime and Policing Bill this spring.

Cooper also said grooming would become an aggravating factor in the sentencing of abuse cases, and promised an "overhaul" of the information and evidence gathered on child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp reiterated his party's call for a full national public inquiry into sexual abuse of children by grooming gangs.

He added that calling for a new inquiry was "not far-right" and that "smearing people who raise those issues is exactly how this ended up being covered up in the first place".