Child grooming is more prevalent in London than in any other part of Britain, a leading child safeguarding campaigner has claimed.
Chris Wild, a youth advisor and survivor of child sex abuse who campaigns for better protection of children in the care home system, has claimed that child grooming is “more catastrophic” in London than anywhere else in the country.
Wild told the BBC that during his work in London, he had seen “children being groomed, children going missing, forced into county lines [drug gangs]” and that others were forced into child prostitution.
According to the recent review of grooming gang activity in Britain by Baroness Louise Casey, London’s Metropolitan Police recorded 2.77 instances of suspected child sex abuse per 1,000 children over the past year.
However, London local authorities only recorded 1.3 children being classified as in need of assessments for exploitation and 1.79 for confirmed child sex abuse. The significant disparity between police and local government figures suggests that the system is overlooking many children.
A Met spokesman said “too many victims, particularly young girls, were let down” and that “policing must and will do better”.
“While in London we assess that criminal exploitation, such as county lines, currently poses the most prevalent threat to children, we recognise – as the review finds – that our data must improve to give a fuller picture. We are acting on this.”
Although the national discussion on child rape grooming gangs mostly focussed on several towns in northern England, such as Rochdale, Rotherham, and Telford, an investigation from GB News reporter Charlie Peters found evidence of grooming in at least 50 towns and cities throughout the country, including in London.
According to Peters, grooming gang activity has often been “lumped” in with other examples of child sex exploitation, while other forms, such as those seen in care homes or within the Catholic Church, have received their own official reports.
However, following recommendations from the Casey review, the Labour government of Sir Keir Starmer backtracked and finally approved a national inquiry with full statutory powers to investigate the scourge of mostly Pakistani Muslim child rape grooming gangs and the politically correct failures of police and local officials to protect often young white girl victims.
Earlier this year, Pakistani-heritage Mayor of London Sadiq Khan faced criticism after he refused to acknowledge whether grooming gangs were operating in the British capital city.
When pressed by Conservative London Assembly Member Susan Hall during Mayor’s Question Time in January as to the existence of grooming gangs in London, Khan claimed multiple times that he did not understand what she was referring to.
“Sadiq Khan needs to take this seriously,” Hall said after the interaction. “The public deserve answers, not a mayor who plays schoolyard games to avoid answering questions and who chooses to stonewall instead of being open.”
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