Conservative Leader Urges Specific London Inquiry into Grooming Gang Allegations
A senior Conservative figure has today demanded a targeted investigation into allegations of grooming gangs operating within the capital, as outlined in a new report. Susan Hall, the Conservative leader at London's City Hall, is calling for a distinct 'London module' to be established as part of the ongoing national inquiry into child sexual exploitation networks.
Clash Over the Existence of Grooming Gangs in the Capital
The report highlights a significant disagreement regarding the nature of exploitation in London. Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has consistently asserted that the capital has not experienced the type of organised sex grooming rings uncovered in numerous other British towns and cities. Instead, the Mayor has suggested that any grooming activity in London is primarily linked to 'county lines' drug gangs, focusing on criminal exploitation rather than being explicitly sexual in nature.
Ms Hall's report sharply criticises this position, stating: 'I asked Mayor of London Sadiq Khan nine times in January 2025 whether grooming gangs existed in London. The mayor's response was to refuse to answer the question, and ask me six times what a grooming gang is.'
She added pointedly: 'If Sadiq Khan, as Mayor and London's Police and Crime Commissioner, does not even know what a grooming gang is, how on earth is he, or his office for Police and Crime, going to find out whether they existed in London?'
Victim Testimonies and a Push for Justice
Since her exchanges with the Mayor, Hall reports being contacted by numerous individuals with direct experience of the issue. 'Dozens of victims, families of victims, and former police officers have reached out to me to share their stories,' she said. 'Their experiences of rape, abuse and exploitation have been utterly appalling; the system has so clearly failed them.'
These accounts have strengthened her resolve, leading her to formally request that Baroness Longfield, chair of the national grooming gang inquiry, ensures London receives specific scrutiny. 'It has made me more determined than ever to get to the truth of this, so that they can get justice and so that this never happens again,' Hall stated. 'Our current understanding of grooming gangs in London is not fit for purpose, and the national inquiry should have a specific London module.'
Questioning London's Apparent Exception
The report challenges the notion that London could be an outlier, arguing it defies logic. 'More than 50 towns and cities across the country have now been identified as possible locations where a grooming gang may have been operating,' it notes. 'If these crimes were so prevalent across the UK, it seems impossible to imagine that London was simply not affected.'
Hall is adamant that London's potential victims must not be overlooked. 'The capital must have a clear and strong voice in the national inquiry, and I am determined to push for this so all of London's victims can get the justice they so badly deserve.'
Contradictory Statements from Authorities
The political call for action comes amid seemingly contradictory assessments from London's authorities. While Sir Sadiq Khan told the London Assembly in June last year there was 'no indication of grooming gangs' operating in the capital, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley provided a different perspective in November.
Commissioner Rowley revealed that officers were actively working on 'tens' of grooming gang cases. Furthermore, he confirmed the force was reviewing a staggering 9,000 cases of child sexual exploitation reported and closed between January 2010 and March 2024. Sir Mark estimated that 'two to three thousand' of these initial cases might involve group-based offending, though this broad category includes various forms of abuse beyond just grooming gang activity.
Broader Context of the National Inquiry
The push for a London-focused investigation occurs within a complex national context. The national inquiry itself was ordered by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer following a landmark report by former victims' commissioner Baroness Casey. Her findings concluded that official bodies had previously avoided addressing 'ethnicity or cultural factors' in grooming gang cases due to fears of being labelled racist.
This report validated long-standing concerns from campaigners, who had often been condemned as racist for highlighting the disproportionate involvement of men from Asian ethnic backgrounds in some high-profile abuse rings. However, the inquiry's establishment has not been without controversy, with critics accusing the Government of a piecemeal approach, allegedly avoiding a full, robust inquiry to prevent alienating certain voter demographics.
A Home Office spokesman has stated that the final scope and structure of the national inquiry will be determined by its independent chair, Baroness Longfield, leaving the door open for potential modules focusing on specific regions like London.
