Police Forces Have More HR Staff Than Officers Tackling Grooming Gangs
A shocking report reveals police prioritize HR roles over tackling grooming gangs
Grooming Gangs, Police, UK, Child Sexual Abuse, Sir Keir Starmer
Telford: So, it turns out that police forces in England and Wales have more people working in HR than actually dealing with grooming gangs. Can you believe that? A recent report from The Telegraph highlights this crazy situation.
Apparently, around 1,000 officers have been trained to tackle these gangs, but there are over 1,700 officers stuck in HR and corporate roles. Critics are scratching their heads, wondering why more resources aren’t being thrown at this serious issue.
Sir Keir Starmer, who used to lead the Crown Prosecution Service, is feeling the heat to push for a new inquiry into the grooming scandals. Even Andy Burnham, the Labour Mayor of Manchester, is backing this call. It’s a hot topic right now.
This week, the Prime Minister faced some backlash after Labour MPs voted against a new investigation into the issue. Labour claims that victims want the government to act on past recommendations instead of starting fresh inquiries.
The grooming gangs task force, set up by Rishi Sunak in April 2023, is supposed to help with these investigations. But with only 1,000 trained officers, it seems like a drop in the bucket compared to the 3,900 officers handling traffic control and the 1,745 in HR.
In Greater Manchester, for instance, there are 68 officers in HR roles, while West Mercia has 18 and West Yorkshire has 122. Richard Tice, a Reform MP, is questioning why so many are in HR instead of focusing on grooming gangs.
There’s a history here, too. Past inquiries found that police were hesitant to pursue Asian grooming suspects for fear of being labeled racist. In Telford, over 1,000 girls were abused, and police were criticized for dropping cases to avoid racial tensions.
Despite the challenges, the National Police Chiefs’ Council insists that there are dedicated teams working on child protection in every police force. They claim that all officers are trained to respond to these sensitive cases, but it’s hard to ignore the numbers.
Recently, Elon Musk jumped into the conversation, criticizing Sir Keir for blocking a new inquiry into the Oldham child grooming scandal. He’s not holding back, suggesting that some officials are trying to protect the Prime Minister.
Sir Keir has acknowledged that vulnerable girls have been let down by the system. Back in 2012, he admitted that authorities failed to take the abuse seriously, allowing perpetrators to escape justice.
In 2022, an independent inquiry warned that the government needed to act urgently on child sex abuse, but it didn’t specifically address grooming. The details of abuse in places like Telford and Rochdale have been coming to light over the years, and it’s a troubling situation.