‘Boris Johnson’s government has refused to release a report on the ethnic background of grooming gangs, saying it is not in “the public interest” and would deprive ministers of a “safe space” to shape policy.
The groomings gangs investigation was announced by Sajid Javid, the former Home Secretary, in 2018, with a pledge that he would “not let cultural or political sensitivities get in the way of understanding the problem and doing something about it”.
The promised transparency soon evaporated, however, with Home Office bureaucrats deciding that the report would in fact remain “internal” — and top-level politicians and parliamentarians representing constituencies plagued by grooming gangs questioning whether a real investigation was even carried out.
Now attempts by the left-wing Independent news website to have the report disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act have foundered, with the Home Office, now led by Priti Patel, insisting it is not in “the public interest”.’
