Survivors quit grooming gangs inquiry panel over secrecy and remit

Four survivors of child sexual exploitation resigned this week from the victims and survivors liaison panel set up to advise the national inquiry into grooming gangs, saying the process has become secretive and hostile and that proposed changes to the inquiry’s remit risk obscuring the role of race and religion in the abuse. The departures, announced on Monday through Tuesday, have left ministers scrambling to appoint an independent chair and to reassure survivors that the investigation will be robust and survivor-centred.

Fiona Goddard and EllieAnn Reynolds were the first to step down on Monday, followed by a woman using the name Elizabeth and a fourth survivor identified as Jessica. In resignation letters to the Home Office they described a toxic, fearful environment and complained of meetings held without survivors’ knowledge, condescending language from officials, and restrictions on seeking support. Reynolds said the final turning point was “the push to change the remit, to widen it in ways that downplay the racial and religious motivations behind our abuse.” Goddard wrote she had “concerns around certain members of the panel and their affiliations” and cited a risk that...