Steerpike Steerpike

Fact check: top policewoman’s grooming gangs claim

BBC Newsnight

To BBC Newsnight, where Deputy Chief Constable Becky Riggs – the national policing lead on child protection and abuse investigations – has hit back at claims by shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick about grooming gangs. Speaking on the programme last night, Riggs said it was ‘not true’ that these types of crimes are committed predominately by British Pakistani men – despite acknowledging that they are ‘overrepresented when you look at their share of the population’. So what is true?

Pakistani men are up to five times as likely to be responsible for child sex grooming offences than the general population

Well, Pakistani men are up to five times as likely to be responsible for child sex grooming offences than the general population, according to figures from the Hydrant Programme, which investigates child sex abuse. Around one in 73 Muslim men over 16 have been prosecuted for ‘group-localised child sexual exploitation’ in Rotherham, research by academics from the universities of Reading and Chichester has revealed.

‘All of these issues need tackling,’ Riggs added, insisting: ‘I’m not here to lessen any of this type of offending in the slightest. These are all abhorrent crimes.’ She goes on: ‘[Group-based offending] comes in all shapes, sizes and forms. So whilst there is a real focus in terms of Pakistani Asian males grooming gangs, you will see from that data that it will tell you that there are other risks to children as well.’

Yet Riggs’ appears to be referencing a much broader definition of ‘group-based’ abuse – which Hydrant says is ‘defined as ‘two or more individuals…who are known to one another and are known to be involved in or to facilitate the sexual exploitation of children and young people.’ When the focus is specifically on grooming gangs, in these cases many offenders do have a Pakistani background. Talk about cherry-picking, eh?

Watch the clip here:

Steerpike
Written by
Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

Topics in this article

Comments