Keighley’s Member of Parliament Robbie Moore has launched a formal petition calling on Bradford Council and West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin to instigate an immediate District-wide inquiry into Child sexual exploitation in Keighley and the wider District.
The MP’s bid follows refusals from Bradford Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe, who claimed a full inquiry "would not be of additional value" following a damning thematic review in 2021 which found five children across the area “suffered abuse no child should have to experience”.
Anna, who was abused by gangs of men while in care and whose abuse is outlined in the 2021 report, said the victims needed a full inquiry, telling BBC News at the time: "I won't accept a generic apology. It's not only myself who had life-changing events. So have thousands of victims."
West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin, who also has the power to instigate a review, has called claims that child grooming in the District was overlooked “categorically false”.
But Mr Moore says that a full-scale is the only way for authorities to “properly understand the full extent of this abhorrent crime”. In a public plea, the MP says he hopes widespread local support for the petition could “tip the balance” towards a full inquiry.
Robbie Moore has campaigned for a full ‘rotherham-style’ review into CSE since his election in 2019, holding a Parliamentary debate on the issue which saw a rare intervention from Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, Dame Eleanor Laing, who said: “The whole House clearly wants action to occur now. It is not often that we are all in such agreement.”
Earlier this year, the local MP once again raised his campaign with the Prime Minister during PMQ's.
Residents can sign Mr Moore’s petition by visiting robbiemoore.org.uk/stop-CSE
Commenting, Robbie Moore MP said:
“Leaders at Bradford Council and our West Yorkshire Mayor are standing in the way of tackling the scourge of child sexual exploitation and grooming gangs across the Bradford District, refusing to act on my calls for a full Rotherham-style review into these abhorrent crimes. That’s why today, I am launching a formal petition demanding an immediate full and independent inquiry.
A full inquiry is a crucial step to understanding the scale and intricacies of these crimes, bringing the guilty to justice, formulating a comprehensive strategy to take on CSE and, most importantly, giving victims and their families scarred by the horrors of exploitation the accountability they deserve.
Cliches such as "lessons will be learnt" from our local leaders are no longer good enough after the Council’s Children’s Services disaster, and it is outrageous for Bradford Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe to claim that a full inquiry “would not be of additional value". Victims deserve justice and transparency, and it is my hope that people from all sides of the political divide across the Bradford District will come together to sign this petition, and help tip the balance to tackle this disgusting crime for good.”
