The move is expected to signal a tougher stance on institutional accountability and local failings in tackling child sexual abuse.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced a full statutory national inquiry into group-based child sexual abuse, following a major audit by Baroness Louise Casey. The inquiry, which will cover England and Wales, marks a significant policy shift after months of criticism over the government’s earlier reluctance to act.
According to reporting by the BBC, Baroness Casey was commissioned to examine the data, scope, and response to group-based grooming gangs. Initially sceptical about the need for another inquiry, she has now recommended a new, national-level investigation—prompting Starmer to accept her findings in full.
“I’ve read every single word of her report, and I’m going to accept her recommendation,” the prime minister said while en route to the G7 summit in Canada. “I think that’s the right thing to do, on the basis of what she has put in her audit.”
The inquiry will be statutory under the Inquiries Act, giving it the power to compel witnesses and demand the production of evidence. Starmer said it would take time to set up properly but stressed that its findings would carry legal and institutional weight.
A senior government source added that the inquiry will “co-ordinate a series of targeted local investigations,” including new probes in specific areas—even if local authorities oppose them. These local inquiries will also be empowered to compel testimony and access records.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to make a formal statement in the House of Commons on Monday, coinciding with the publication of Baroness Casey’s report.
For months, Sir Keir has faced mounting pressure to act on the issue. Earlier this year, calls for a national inquiry were dismissed by the previous government, which pointed to the findings of a prior seven-year probe led by Professor Alexis Jay. That inquiry had already examined child sexual exploitation cases in towns such as Rotherham and Rochdale—where groups of men, mainly of Pakistani descent, were convicted of abusing predominantly white girls.
The debate was reignited in January when tech billionaire Elon Musk publicly criticised Starmer for failing to authorise a national investigation. The issue became a flashpoint in political and social discourse, especially around the handling of high-profile grooming gang cases.
“I’ve never said we shouldn’t look again at any issue,” Starmer told reporters. “Baroness Casey has changed her view based on the evidence she’s seen. I asked her to double-check, and she has delivered.”
The move is expected to signal a tougher stance on institutional accountability and local failings in tackling child sexual abuse.
