The Home Office has announced a nationwide investigation into grooming, carried out by the National Crime Agency.
“The vulnerable young girls who suffered unimaginable abuse at the hands of groups of adult men have now grown into brave women who are rightly demanding justice for what they went through when they were just children,” said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. “Not enough people listened to them then. That was wrong and unforgivable. We are changing that now.”
The move comes after the findings of Baroness Louise Casey’s independent report into sexual exploitation.
Some are now accusing the Labour government of U-turning on the issue, while Labour politicians defend the six-month wait.
Opinion: We need righteous fury in the new grooming gangs inquiry — and one big change
Rachel Reeves told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, as reported by the Guardian, that ministers had “never dismissed the concerns of victims” and that “the prime minister wanted to assure himself he was doing everything that was necessary, which is why he asked Baroness Casey to do this rapid review”.
This isn’t the first time the issue has been raised, however, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer catching criticism for “wasting six months” and not acting sooner.
Which politicians have backtracked on a national grooming inquiry?
364 politicians voted against a national grooming inquiry in January 2025, earning a 253 majority over the 111 politicians in favour.
High-profile politicians throughout Sir Keir’s cabinet have also made public comments about the issue. Here’s a closer look at some of the politicians now backtracking on their previous statements.
Sir Keir Starmer
Back in January 2025, Sir Keir Starmer argued that several inquiries had already been held into abuse carried out by gangs of men, as well as acknowledging that victims and survivors had mixed feelings about a potential new probe.
He also blamed the Conservative government for not acting for 14 years, calling out Kemi Badenoch in particular.
“Those that are spreading lies and misinformation as far and wide as possible, they're not interested in victims,” he said while speaking to reporters, as reported by the BBC. “They're interested in themselves. I enjoy the thrust of politics, the robust debate that we must have. But that's got to be based on facts and truth, not on lies.”
Sir Keir now points to the Louise Casey audit as reason for ordering the inquiry six months on, with the BBC quoting him: "She's come to the view there should be a national inquiry on the basis of what she's seen.
“I've read every single word of her report, and I'm going to accept her recommendation. I think that's the right thing to do, on the basis of what she has put in her audit.
“I asked her to do that job, to double-check on this. She's done that job for me, and having read her report… I shall now implement her recommendation.”
Yvette Cooper
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that the focus needed to be on “swift action” while speaking to GB News back in January.
“We've already had, obviously, one national inquiry,” she said. “We've already had the investigations in place, but what we need to do is make sure that we've got the swift action.
“I will always look at whatever action is needed to make sure that we can keep children and young people safe. That's why we're waiting for the Louise Casey audit, but it's also why we need the stronger laws and the stronger police investigations too.”
It’s this audit that has now come out and has seemingly informed the change in policy, with Cooper saying: “More than 800 grooming gang cases have already been identified by police after I asked them to look again at cases which had closed too early. Now we are asking the National Crime Agency to lead a major nationwide operation to track down more perpetrators and bring them to justice.”
Jess Phillips
Jess Phillips voted against a national grooming inquiry, although later acknowledged cover-ups while debating with Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp in the House of Commons in April.
“I know exactly the issue of the cover-up, as does everyone already, because of the many local inquiries that told us that this happened, and the national inquiry that has told us that there were cover-ups,” she said, as reported by the Standard. “What we must focus on is to make sure - like what happened in Telford - that there is a local process of accountability that actually changes things on the ground. That is what I'll do.”
Fast forward to June 2025 and GB News reported that survivors of grooming gangs were reportedly contacted by Jess Phillips on June 14 in her capacity as Safeguarding Minister with promises of “new actions” coming this week.
Presumably, this indicates involvement with the now-announced inquiry into nationwide grooming.
