When you listen to or read stories about the scandal in Rotherham, why not let your justifiable horror and anger be slightly smoothed by you simultaneously playing Social Care Bingo. Listen out for those key words and phrases that get trotted out every time that there is a similar scandal. 'Care' agencies, not joining the dots, cannot be allowed to happen again, Labour, not resigning, overworked, police, social services, vulnerable, Asian grooming gang, multi-agency - when you have heard them all, call 'house' to yourself and declare yourself a winner.
I say the foregoing not to in anyway belittle the suffering that families and young people were subjected to but only to illustrate how we keep on hearing the same feeble answers to questions raised about different but similar events.
Another phrase that gets bandied about is 'political correctness'. As in, the police do not follow-up on the accusations that are made because to do so would break a political correctness taboo - they would be obliged to target the gangs of exclusively Asian men that are visiting these horrors upon our young children.
In case all of the above sounds alien to you, let me bring you up to date.
An independent report has just been published relating to events in Rotherham, England with particular reference to widespread allegations of sexual abuse carried out by gangs of Asian men. In the period between 1997 and 2013, at least 1,400 children were subjected to sexual abuse at the hands of Asian men. In most all cases, repeatedly so. These children were then further abused by the system. Police didn't believe them or their parents and didn't follow-up on allegations. The Police lost evidence. The Social Services department of Rotherham council didn't pursue allegations.
Some of you may already have heard of Rotherham and its Social Services department. They are one and the same group that removed foster children away from a family because that family were found to be members of the UK Independence Party (UKIP). This is a party that, amongst other policies promotes the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union and also tougher immigration policies. Given what we now know about Rotherham Social Services, it might have served those foster parents better if they had simply declared themselves as paedophiles and rapists instead of the supporters of a legitimate political party. A party that is, because of its popular policies, seriously threatening to the major parties.
Let me though get back to this latest scandal.
Look again at the dates mentioned above - 1997 to 2013. In 2002, following increasing concern amongst youth workers and mounting evidence, a 'draft report' was prepared which highlighted these concerns and the strong evidence of child sexual exploitation being carried out on a large scale. This report didn't see the light of day because senior police and council officials objected to the criticism of their organisations contained therein. So the abuse continued and probably still continues.
An opportunity to face-up to the failings of the perennially Labour-run council was missed and young children paid the price for years and years. Lest I being accused of bringing party politics into this issue and making political capital out of this tragedy - a charge regularly trotted out by Labour, to deflect justifiable criticism - let me say that on the abdication of responsibility for its failings, Labour has previous form. I have written here on the awful Mid Staffs events and here on the tragedies in Cumbria. These can be considered just the tip of the incompetence iceberg that is Labour.
The Labour party cannot distance itself from responsibility. These events happened on their watch! They were in charge and they chose either to simply close their eyes or willfully to ignore the plight of the abused children on the grounds of political correctness. If Labour had pursued the allegations, they would have exposed the cancer eating at the heart of the Asian community in Rotherham and other Labour-run towns. A cancer that has gangs of Asian men - most all, seemingly Muslim - preying on young girls (though young boys were also targeted) . Grooming them and then gang-raping them and forcing them into prostitution and trafficking them.
And so to the title of this piece.
The Labour Party councillor in charge of Children's Services for 2005 to 2010 was Shaun Wright. He resigned in 2010, as mounting evidence of the abuse became more widely known. He was subsequently selected, as the Labour Party candidate for the elected position of Police and Crime Commissioner for South Yorkshire - I am not making this up! In what was previously styled as the Socialist Republic of South Yorkshire, he was duly elected. Note, prior to the emergence of UKIP, ballot papers in such areas were not so much counted as weighed, such was the dominance of Labour.
This Shaun Wright is still in office. His deputy, Tracey Cheetham, has resigned. Ms Cheetham is also a Labour party councilor and, since she represents Barnsley, another rotten Labour borough but one not so far stained by the muck sloshing around in Rotherham, she can be seen to be doing the decent thing and quitting. Mr Wright has quit too. Not his £85,000 a year job but the Labour Party. Mr Wright seems to believe that resigning from Rotherham Council, in 2010 was all the resigning he needed to do!
Mr Wright isn't alone though. Martin Kimber, the Chief Executive of Rotherham Council has also chosen to remain in his £158,160 paid post. The 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services' is the fifth person to hold that title since 2009. The £112,080 is no doubt a comfort and would be difficult for many to simply give-up. Some might say that Mr Kimber, appointed in 2009 and the Strategic Director of etc., came late to the scene and don't need to resign. I say that that is simply rubbish! They get these high salaries and inflation-proof and high pensions because they are supposed to take responsibility. Kimber earns a higher salary than David Cameron, the UK Prime Minister!
Mr Wright should resign or should be fired and when fired his pension should be withheld.
Mr Kimber should resign or should be fired. So too should the 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services'.
The pensions of the former Chief Executives and the former 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services' should be cut. These people simply didn't earn them.
The Police too should clean house. Police officers simply didn't do their job. The Jay Report tells tales of the police being told about suspected abuse and the police ignoring this because they had other matters to pursue. Police officers need to be fired and pensions cut.
They all failed to do their jobs and they all failed the people of Rotherham. Mostly though, they all failed the young people who have had their lives ruined by their negligence and by the criminal behavior of others.
The politicians in Rotherham should also resign, if their tenure started before 2013. They too have failed the people of Rotherham. I suspect that part of their failure was politically motivated. They simply didn't want to alienate a core constituency - the Asian vote - by highlighting the atrocities being meted out by members of that community. Enough being coy. Asian community is the politically correct term for Pakistani males. For it is them, Pakistani men, that have committed these crimes - crimes against young children. Some of these Pakistani men are now in prison but many more are out there, still committing these awful crimes. Check out the stories on the Oxford and Rochdale sexual exploitation rings and you will find the common thread. The political elite and police and councils cowering behind political correctness refuse to name this menace - predatory Pakistani males - for what it is.
If these council officers, police officers and local politicians had the merest shred of common decency, then they would resign, immediately. If they don't they must be sacked.
I say the foregoing not to in anyway belittle the suffering that families and young people were subjected to but only to illustrate how we keep on hearing the same feeble answers to questions raised about different but similar events.
Another phrase that gets bandied about is 'political correctness'. As in, the police do not follow-up on the accusations that are made because to do so would break a political correctness taboo - they would be obliged to target the gangs of exclusively Asian men that are visiting these horrors upon our young children.
In case all of the above sounds alien to you, let me bring you up to date.
An independent report has just been published relating to events in Rotherham, England with particular reference to widespread allegations of sexual abuse carried out by gangs of Asian men. In the period between 1997 and 2013, at least 1,400 children were subjected to sexual abuse at the hands of Asian men. In most all cases, repeatedly so. These children were then further abused by the system. Police didn't believe them or their parents and didn't follow-up on allegations. The Police lost evidence. The Social Services department of Rotherham council didn't pursue allegations.
Some of you may already have heard of Rotherham and its Social Services department. They are one and the same group that removed foster children away from a family because that family were found to be members of the UK Independence Party (UKIP). This is a party that, amongst other policies promotes the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union and also tougher immigration policies. Given what we now know about Rotherham Social Services, it might have served those foster parents better if they had simply declared themselves as paedophiles and rapists instead of the supporters of a legitimate political party. A party that is, because of its popular policies, seriously threatening to the major parties.
Let me though get back to this latest scandal.
Look again at the dates mentioned above - 1997 to 2013. In 2002, following increasing concern amongst youth workers and mounting evidence, a 'draft report' was prepared which highlighted these concerns and the strong evidence of child sexual exploitation being carried out on a large scale. This report didn't see the light of day because senior police and council officials objected to the criticism of their organisations contained therein. So the abuse continued and probably still continues.
An opportunity to face-up to the failings of the perennially Labour-run council was missed and young children paid the price for years and years. Lest I being accused of bringing party politics into this issue and making political capital out of this tragedy - a charge regularly trotted out by Labour, to deflect justifiable criticism - let me say that on the abdication of responsibility for its failings, Labour has previous form. I have written here on the awful Mid Staffs events and here on the tragedies in Cumbria. These can be considered just the tip of the incompetence iceberg that is Labour.
The Labour party cannot distance itself from responsibility. These events happened on their watch! They were in charge and they chose either to simply close their eyes or willfully to ignore the plight of the abused children on the grounds of political correctness. If Labour had pursued the allegations, they would have exposed the cancer eating at the heart of the Asian community in Rotherham and other Labour-run towns. A cancer that has gangs of Asian men - most all, seemingly Muslim - preying on young girls (though young boys were also targeted) . Grooming them and then gang-raping them and forcing them into prostitution and trafficking them.
And so to the title of this piece.
The Labour Party councillor in charge of Children's Services for 2005 to 2010 was Shaun Wright. He resigned in 2010, as mounting evidence of the abuse became more widely known. He was subsequently selected, as the Labour Party candidate for the elected position of Police and Crime Commissioner for South Yorkshire - I am not making this up! In what was previously styled as the Socialist Republic of South Yorkshire, he was duly elected. Note, prior to the emergence of UKIP, ballot papers in such areas were not so much counted as weighed, such was the dominance of Labour.
This Shaun Wright is still in office. His deputy, Tracey Cheetham, has resigned. Ms Cheetham is also a Labour party councilor and, since she represents Barnsley, another rotten Labour borough but one not so far stained by the muck sloshing around in Rotherham, she can be seen to be doing the decent thing and quitting. Mr Wright has quit too. Not his £85,000 a year job but the Labour Party. Mr Wright seems to believe that resigning from Rotherham Council, in 2010 was all the resigning he needed to do!
Mr Wright isn't alone though. Martin Kimber, the Chief Executive of Rotherham Council has also chosen to remain in his £158,160 paid post. The 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services' is the fifth person to hold that title since 2009. The £112,080 is no doubt a comfort and would be difficult for many to simply give-up. Some might say that Mr Kimber, appointed in 2009 and the Strategic Director of etc., came late to the scene and don't need to resign. I say that that is simply rubbish! They get these high salaries and inflation-proof and high pensions because they are supposed to take responsibility. Kimber earns a higher salary than David Cameron, the UK Prime Minister!
Mr Wright should resign or should be fired and when fired his pension should be withheld.
Mr Kimber should resign or should be fired. So too should the 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services'.
The pensions of the former Chief Executives and the former 'Strategic Director of Children and Young People Services' should be cut. These people simply didn't earn them.
The Police too should clean house. Police officers simply didn't do their job. The Jay Report tells tales of the police being told about suspected abuse and the police ignoring this because they had other matters to pursue. Police officers need to be fired and pensions cut.
They all failed to do their jobs and they all failed the people of Rotherham. Mostly though, they all failed the young people who have had their lives ruined by their negligence and by the criminal behavior of others.
The politicians in Rotherham should also resign, if their tenure started before 2013. They too have failed the people of Rotherham. I suspect that part of their failure was politically motivated. They simply didn't want to alienate a core constituency - the Asian vote - by highlighting the atrocities being meted out by members of that community. Enough being coy. Asian community is the politically correct term for Pakistani males. For it is them, Pakistani men, that have committed these crimes - crimes against young children. Some of these Pakistani men are now in prison but many more are out there, still committing these awful crimes. Check out the stories on the Oxford and Rochdale sexual exploitation rings and you will find the common thread. The political elite and police and councils cowering behind political correctness refuse to name this menace - predatory Pakistani males - for what it is.
If these council officers, police officers and local politicians had the merest shred of common decency, then they would resign, immediately. If they don't they must be sacked.
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