Rotherham child abuse scandal: 1,400 children exploited, report finds

**candyfloss** Tue 26 Aug 2014, 5:37 pm

Rotherham child abuse scandal: 1,400 children exploited, report finds

At least 1,400 children were subjected to appalling sexual exploitation in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013, a report has found.

Children as young as 11 were raped by multiple perpetrators, abducted, trafficked to other cities in England, beaten and intimidated, it said.

The report, commissioned by Rotherham Borough Council, revealed there had been three previous inquiries.

Council leader Roger Stone said he would step down with immediate effect.

Mr Stone, who has been the leader since 2003, said: "I believe it is only right that as leader I take responsibility for the historic failings described so clearly."

“

Professor Alexis Jay

The inquiry team noted fears among council staff of being labelled "racist" if they focussed on victims' description of the majority of abusers as "Asian" men.

'Doused in petrol'

Professor Alexis Jay, who wrote the latest report, said there had been "blatant" collective failures by the council's leadership, senior managers had "underplayed" the scale of the problem and South Yorkshire Police had failed to prioritise the issue.

Prof Jay said: "No-one knows the true scale of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham over the years. Our conservative estimate is that approximately 1,400 children were sexually exploited over the full inquiry period, from 1997 to 2013."

Revealing details of the inquiry's findings, Prof Jay said: "It is hard to describe the appalling nature of the abuse that child victims suffered."

The inquiry team found examples of "children who had been doused in petrol and threatened with being set alight, threatened with guns, made to witness brutally violent rapes and threatened they would be next if they told anyone".

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Analysis

James Vincent, BBC Look North

The scale of this report is simply staggering and some of the detail extremely hard to read.

It lays out how Rotherham Council and the police knew about the level of child sexual exploitation in the town, but didn't do anything about it.

They either didn't believe what they were being told, played it down, or were too nervous to act. The failures, the report says, are blatant.

The report estimates 1,400 children were sexually exploited over 16 years, with one young person telling the report's author that gang rape was a usual part of growing up in Rotherham.

The processes for dealing with these crimes have got better in the last four years, but still improvements need to be made.

There were more apologies from the council today but the report's author says they are too late.

Five men from the town were jailed for sexual offences against girls in 2010, but the report said police "regarded many child victims with contempt".

Ch Supt Jason Harwin Ch Supt Jason Harwin said victims had been "let down"
District Commander for Rotherham, Ch Supt Jason Harwin said: "Firstly I'd like to start by offering an unreserved apology to the victims of child sexual exploitation who did not receive the level of service they should be able to expect from their local police force.

Ch Supt Harwin said the force had "overhauled" the way it dealt with such cases and had successfully prosecuted a number of abusers.

But he admitted: "I accept that our recent successes... will not heal the pain of those victims who have been let down."

'Racism' fear

The report found: "Several staff described their nervousness about identifying the ethnic origins of perpetrators for fear of being thought as racist; others remembered clear direction from their managers not to do so."

A victim of sexual abuse in Rotherham told BBC's Panorama: "I was a child and they should have stepped in"

Failures by those charged with protecting children happened despite three reports between 2002 and 2006 which both the council and police were aware of, and "which could not have been clearer in the description of the situation in Rotherham".

She said the first of these reports was "effectively suppressed" because senior officers did not believe the data. The other two were ignored, she said.

The inquiry team found that in the early-2000s when a group of professionals attempted to monitor a number of children believed to be at risk, "managers gave little help or support to their efforts".

The report revealed some people at a senior level in the police and children's social care thought the extent of the problem was being "exaggerated".

Prof Jay said: "The authorities involved have a great deal to answer for."

A victim of abuse in Rotherham, who has been called "Isabel" to protect her identity, told BBC Panorama: "I was a child and they should have stepped in.

"No matter what's done now... it's not going to change that it was too late, it should have been stopped and prevented."

Speaking about her abuser, Isabel said: "I think because the police were aware and social services were aware and he knew that and they still didn't stop him it I think it encouraged him.

"It almost became like a game to him. He was untouchable."

'Horrific experiences'

Rotherham council's chief executive, Martin Kimber, said he accepted the report and the recommendations made and apologised to the victims of abuse.

Jump media playerMedia player helpOut of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.
Martin Kimber said the council "failed in its duty to protect its young people"

He said: "The report does not make comfortable reading in its account of the horrific experiences of some young people in the past, and I would like to reiterate our sincere apology to those who were let down when they needed help.

"I commissioned this independent review to understand fully what went wrong, why it went wrong and to ensure that the lessons learned in Rotherham mean these mistakes can never happen again.

"The report confirms that our services have improved significantly over the last five years and are stronger today than ever before.

"This is important because it allows me to reassure young people and families that should anyone raise concerns we will take them seriously and provide them with the support they need.

"However, that must not overshadow - and certainly does not excuse - the finding that for a significant amount of time the council and its partners could and should have done more to protect young people from what must be one of the most horrific forms of abuse imaginable."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-28939089

**Admin** Fri 05 Sep 2014, 6:14 pm

Dave Lee Travis 'was a sexual opportunist', retrial hears

5 September 2014 Last updated at 16:18

Dave Lee Travis was an opportunist who groped vulnerable women and those who were alone, a jury has heard.

The former Radio 1 DJ is being retried on two counts - one of indecent assault and one of sexual assault - and faces a further charge of indecent assault.

Outlining the prosecution case against the 69-year-old at Southwark Crown Court, Miranda Moore QC said Mr Travis "seemed to act as if he had a perfect right" to grope women.

Mr Travis denies all of the charges.

In a trial earlier this year, a jury was unable to reach a verdict on the first two charges, which are said to have taken place in 1991 and 2008 respectively.

The third charge relates to an indecent assault alleged to have taken place in January 1995. Mr Travis, who is charged under his real name of David Griffin, was arrested in October 2012.

'Exploited'

The prosecutor said: "The offences that you are going to consider vary in seriousness. They involved unwanted physical contact over and under clothing.

"He has a propensity towards laying his hands in a sexual manner on young women who are alone with him or in vulnerable positions. He is an opportunist."

Ms Moore added: "The defendant, according to these ladies, simply seemed to act as if he had a perfect right to touch their breasts or put his hands in their clothing to grope them."

She said the women felt "upset, embarrassed, shocked" and unsure what to do because Mr Travis was a celebrity.

The first alleged victim to give evidence was a journalist who claimed the DJ groped her breasts in his kitchen after she interviewed him at his home, leaving her feeling "exploited".

In court
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Mr Travis is appearing in courtroom one at Southwark Crown Court

By Ben Geoghegan, BBC News

Dave Lee Travis sits close to the centre of the dock of courtroom one. The dock officer is behind him and to the left some distance away. The former DJ sometimes wears headphones so that he can hear what's being said in this, the second trial he's faced this year.

Dressed in a blue blazer and wearing a red-patterned tie, Mr Travis pushes himself into his chair so that he is almost leaning backwards. Before the prosecuting QC begins her opening speech, the judge warns the jury that Mr Griffin (Mr Travis's real name) may, from time to time, get up and walk around.

The judge has given him permission to do that. It helps with his bad back.

Wide range of child and adult abuse inquiries _77207535_464x2

'Blurted out'
She said the DJ showed her a photograph of a woman in a bikini and offered to take a similar picture of her, telling the woman she had a "good figure".

Having dismissed the offer once, when Mr Travis asked her again she said she felt she had to give a "bigger justification" as to why she did not want such a photograph.

"I just blurted out, thinking it would put him off, 'Well I don't think I have big enough boobs,'" the witness said. "There was a split second and then he put his hands out and put them on my breasts."

She said he touched her for several seconds and then acted like nothing had happened.
'Never said sorry'
During cross-examination by Mr Travis's barrister Stephen Vullo QC, she outlined exactly how long Mr Travis had allegedly touched her for, saying: "It was a deliberate hands-on, one, two, three, four, pull away."

The woman told the jury: "He never said sorry, he didn't look embarrassed about what he had done and he was still relatively talkative even though he was a bit quieter."

Mr Travis drove her from his home to a local station so she could catch a train home, she said. As the train departed, the woman said: "The enormity of what had happened hit me and I suddenly felt very depressed and very lonely and exploited."

Wide range of child and adult abuse inquiries _77404551_dlt050914

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The witness gave evidence from behind a screen

She later told her flatmates and her mother about the alleged incident but did not inform police at the time, the court heard.

The woman, who gave evidence from behind a curtain, said she might have gone to the police immediately if it had been "more serious" and that she had not considered there could be further alleged victims.

When Mr Vullo asked the woman if she had exaggerated her claims, she replied: "I have absolutely not exaggerated, I am only telling the truth."

One of the woman's then flatmates told the court her friend was "upset and a bit angry" when she returned home from the interview.

The alleged victim's mother also gave evidence, saying her daughter asked for advice after the interview and that she sounded "very upset" at the time. She said she had been "adamant" her daughter should not tell her employers, fearing there would be concern about her ability to do her job.

When they discussed the matter a few years later, her daughter, who had since changed jobs, wanted to go to the police and her mother said she "fully supported" that decision.
Aladdin assault claim
The other two charges relate to a woman who claims the DJ assaulted her when they were both working on a production of Aladdin and a woman who was working on the BBC's Mrs Merton Show when he appeared as a guest.

The woman working on the pantomime alleges Mr Travis put his hand inside her trousers while they were alone in his dressing room.

She said Mr Travis was holding the door closed but she managed to prise it open and when she left the room, she saw that comedy duo the Chuckle Brothers were stood in the corridor. She says she later told co-workers what had happened.

The other alleged victim said Mr Travis approached her in the corridor, where she was smoking, and made a comment about her "poor little lungs" before placing his hands on her chest for about 10 to 15 seconds. She also told a colleague and said she was "mildly hysterical" at the time.

The prosecutor also outlined claims from two other women, which do not form part of the trial indictment.

One woman claimed she was assaulted by Mr Travis as she served him drinks at a venue on the Isle of Man. Another woman, also a journalist, claimed that Mr Travis assaulted her while she was at his house to interview him.

A jury of six men and six women was sworn in for the retrial earlier this week.

Trial judge Anthony Leonard QC told them that while a jury would not ordinarily be told a defendant had already faced a trial, it was "sensible" to do so in this case as it was likely some jurors would remember the earlier hearing.

The case has been adjourned until Monday morning

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29076833

Guest Fri 05 Sep 2014, 6:24 pm

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/westminster-child-abuse-scandal-lord-mayor-of-london-fiona-woolf-replaces-baroness-butlersloss-as-inquiry-head-9714316.html

Westminster child abuse scandal: Lord Mayor of London Fiona Woolf replaces Baroness Butler-Sloss as inquiry head

The first female Lord Mayor of the City of London will replace Baroness Butler-Sloss as the head of an inquiry into historic child sex abuse in Westminster.

Fiona Woolf has been named as the new head of the probe, which was announced in July to examine allegations that institutions including the Government and civil service covered up or failed to investigate abuse.

The 66-year-old is a renowned solicitor and the former president of the Law Society.

cherry Sun 07 Sep 2014, 3:41 am

people are protesting about her appointment, she is a member of the establishment and not acceptable to victims of abuse.
Also on some committee with Leon Brittan and supposed to be friendly with him but he is one of the people the inquiry should be investigating - Dickens Dossier etc.

**Freedom** Tue 23 Sep 2014, 5:23 pm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29331740#"

**Admin** Tue 23 Sep 2014, 9:53 pm

Got to put this up, what a great headline.....

Wide range of child and adult abuse inquiries ByPvDo7IEAAGBp2

**candyfloss** Fri 26 Sep 2014, 1:19 pm

Dave Lee Travis given suspended sentence

Former BBC Radio 1 DJ Dave Lee Travis has been given a suspended sentence of three months for indecently assaulting a woman in 1995.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29372564

Marky Sat 27 Sep 2014, 10:14 am

15 charges 1 conviction. which of those two figures is the anomaly. Wink

**Freedom** Sat 27 Sep 2014, 10:59 am

It does seem strange that one person was believed and not all the others.

Poe Mon 29 Sep 2014, 9:06 am

Freedom wrote:It does seem strange that one person was believed and not all the others.

By the very nature of what happened, it must be very difficult to prove anything beyond reasonable doubt since it is one person's word against another's.

Here is the full sentencing:

http://www.courtnewsuk.co.uk/?news_id=38401

1. You have been convicted of, and I sentence you for, one offence of indecent assault.
2. The assault took place on 16th January 1995. The woman you assaulted was 22 years old and 4' 11" in height. She worked on the Mrs Merton Show; it was her first real job since University. You were in your late 40’s, an experienced presenter and DJ, and still a very well known media personality not only as perceived by the public but also through your own eyes, and, at over 6' tall you towered over her.
3. You saw her smoking in the dressing room corridor. You went over to her and said “Oh you shouldn’t be smoking, think about your poor little lungs.” I have no doubt that you used this as an excuse to get close to her and to touch her. You pinned her up against the wall and started to touch her rib cage and then slid your hands up over her breasts and her clothes, and started squeezing them. You left your hands there for several seconds.
4. She said it felt shocking. She could not believe what was happening. She told the court that she had done nothing to encourage your attention and suddenly there you were, touching her really hard in what she described as a squeezing grope as you stared intensely at her breasts.
5. She said that, with you looming over her, she felt scared and when she got away she was shaking and a bit beside herself. She described her feeling of being violated.
6. For years she did not talk about it. Having thought at first that this was all part of showbiz, when she got into her 30’s she started to think that what you did was really out of order and she became angry.
7. In her victim impact statement she describes herself as a naïve and trusting 22 year old. She was subjected to an unprovoked and terrifying assault and considers herself lucky to be psychologically robust enough to deal with the distress, supported by family and friends. Giving evidence about these events has been painful for her.
8. When you gave evidence you described what she was alleging took place as “a nasty thing to do”. You are right in your assessment: it was a nasty thing to do but it was more than that. It was an intentional and unpleasant sexual assault. You took advantage of a young woman in a vulnerable position whose job it was to look after you that day.
9. I judge that you believed she would not make a fuss about what you did to her. You were right about that, too. She made no complaint until she heard you describe the witnesses in your previous trial as “liars”. That encouraged her to come forward.
10. You have been convicted of indecent assault under an Act passed in 1956. The maximum sentence for these offences was set at two years imprisonment.
11. In deciding the appropriate sentence I have taken into account the guidance provided in the relevant authorities and the assistance given at p.155 of the latest Definitive Guidelines. I am required to have regard to the sentencing guidelines as they now are for an equivalent offence under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
12. Following those guidelines, which came into effect in April 2014, the prosecution accepts, rightly, that this offending falls into the lowest category, that is category 3(b), with a recommended starting point of a high level community order and a category range from a medium level community order up to 26 weeks imprisonment. It follows that the difference in maximum sentences between the offence you were convicted of and its present day equivalent has no impact on my sentence.
13. It has been urged upon me by your counsel that your offending does not pass the custody threshold and that I should impose a community order. Mr Vullo QC was right to submit that, if I judge a community sentence to be unsuitable for a man of your age and background, then the law requires me to consider some lesser sentence, such as a conditional discharge.
14. In my judgement the aggravating feature in this case is the disparity in your age and status compared to that of the victim which made her vulnerable to your advances and is not outweighed by the mitigating factors of having no previous convictions and being of good character. In my judgment that takes your offending above the recommended starting point and through the custody threshold.
15. The prosecution submits that a further aggravating feature is the way in which it is suggested that you used the media to proclaim your innocence from the moment you were arrested. They rely on paragraphs 66 to 70 of the judgment in Attorney General’s Reference No. 38 of 2013, R. v. Stuart Hall [2013] EWCA Crim 1450 where the Court of Appeal decided that Hall’s descriptions of the allegations as “…pernicious, callous, cruel and, above all, spurious” followed by a plea of guilty was a serious aggravating feature of his offending. In my judgment that has only a very limited impact in your case where you have been acquitted of 14 out of the 15 charges which have been put before two juries, and where the offence of which you have been convicted was not known at the time you made your comments to the media. It follows that I shall take no account of this issue when passing sentence.
16. Whilst the commission of any indecent assault is serious and reprehensible, the scale and nature of the offences of which Stuart Hall and other defendants who have been successfully prosecuted under Operation Yew Tree and have been sentenced are of a different order of magnitude to the single offence of which you have been convicted.
17. The mitigating factors I take into account include that:-
(a) You have no previous convictions. In the course of two trials I have heard from a great number of character witnesses called on your behalf. Their descriptions included the following: a kind person always trying to help people, friendly, no airs and graces, generous, warm hearted and a good friend.

(b) I am to sentence you for a single offence of indecent assault and the Crown’s case that you had a propensity to commit indecent assaults has not been made out.

(c) The investigation and trials have taken over two years to complete and you have in no way contributed to that delay.

(d) They have had a toll on your health and, additionally, you are having to deal with other health issues within your family.

(e) Your conviction is is likely to effect your ability to gain employment in the future.

18. Although I have concluded that your offending passes the custody threshold and that neither a fine alone nor a community sentence can be justified for it, because of the mitigating factors that apply in your case, I have decided that I can suspend that sentence.

19. Taking into account the seriousness of your offence and the mitigating factors in your case which I have set out, I sentence you to 3 months imprisonment.

20. The sentence of 3 months will be suspended for 2 years. This is the operational period of the sentence and if in the next 2 years you commit any offence you will be brought back to court and you will be liable to serve the sentence.

21. The surcharge provisions apply to this case and the order will be drawn up accordingly.
- See more at: http://www.courtnewsuk.co.uk/?news_id=38401#sthash.NZ2Ii07s.dpuf

**candyfloss** Mon 29 Sep 2014, 5:46 pm

His sentence to be reviewed by Attorney General as some saying it was too lenient..........

Dave Lee Travis sentence to be reviewed

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29415240

[snipped]

The three-month suspended sentence given to former BBC Radio 1 DJ Dave Lee Travis is to be reviewed by the attorney general's office.

The 69-year-old was sentenced on Friday after being found guilty of indecently assaulting a TV researcher on the Mrs Merton Show in 1995.

The attorney general's office said four people had complained that the sentence was "unduly lenient".

**candyfloss** Tue 30 Sep 2014, 5:56 pm

Not another DJ............

DJ Neil Fox held over 'sex assaults'

Radio DJ Neil Fox - known as "Dr Fox" - has been arrested in London by police investigating claims of historical sex offences.

The arrest came after separate allegations were made by two women, the BBC understands.

According to reports, he was arrested in Soho at the studios of Magic FM, where he presents the breakfast show.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29431833

Guest Mon 06 Oct 2014, 3:11 pm

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/operation-yewtree-new-sex-abuse-suspects-are-untouchable-senior-policemen-politicians-1468682

The names of at least 12 public figures, including policemen and politicians, have been passed on to police investigating claims of historic sexual abuse.

Investigative reporter Mark Williams Thomas passed on the names to officers working under Operation Yewtree, the Metropolitan Police inquiry investigating sex abuse allegations in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal.

Thomas, who two years ago helped expose Savile as one of the most prolific paedophiles in British history by presenting a documentary first highlighting his abuse, said the new claims involve some "very powerful" people who are alleged to have committed sex abuse crimes between the 1950s and 1980s.

He added that unlike previous convictions such as Max Clifford, Rolf Harris, and Dave Lee Travis, none of the new suspects are celebrities but work for the government or local police.

He told the Sunday Mercury: "I know of another twelve public figures and that is a minimum. Sadly some of these people still remain untouchable because they are so powerful. Whilst huge progress has been made following Savile expose - some very powerful people still need to be brought to justice."

Mimi Mon 06 Oct 2014, 6:09 pm

Beats me how he can say anyone in this country can be `untouchable`. It would mean such people could forever abuse children and get away with it.

AndyB Mon 06 Oct 2014, 9:43 pm

Mimi wrote:Beats me how he can say anyone in this country can be `untouchable`. It would mean such people could forever abuse children and get away with it.

What on earth do you think has been happening over the last thirty to forty years (at least)? Have you not noticed that, following Tom Watson's revelation to the house of commons of "clear intelligence suggesting a powerful paedophile network linked to Parliament and Number 10" that the only people arrested are z list celebrities and groping DJs. Not a single judge, senior police officer, senior civil servant or MP (serving or former) has been arrested. I'd say that's getting away with it wouldn't you?

Anne Thu 16 Oct 2014, 7:47 am

A letter sent by the children's charity says the sexual exploitation the youngster suffered at 16 "could have been avoided".

By Gerard Tubb, North Of England Correspondent

The children's charity Barnardo's has been accused of blaming a victim of child sexual exploitation for her own sexual abuse by a gang of men who had groomed her.

A letter written by a Barnado's project worker in 1993 says that abuse of a 16-year-old girl in accommodation owned by the charity could have been avoided if she had not placed herself in danger.

The letter states that the girl was sexually assaulted but: "The situation could have been avoided if [she] had not been party to the antics of a group of young men."

It goes on: "Having consumed a quantity of alcohol and three valium tablets [she] was not able to maintain control or respond to the situation in a constructive and cohesive way."

Last month chief executive of Barnardo's Javed Khan condemned institutions that had blamed children for their own abuse and called for them to be investigated by the Government's independent inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation.

The victim, now 37, says the sexual assault that triggered the letter happened in her Leeds flat after British Pakistani men befriended her and let her run up debts before giving her drink and drugs.

"I woke up and I didn't have any clothes on and there were half naked men around," she said.

"I knew I'd been assaulted. I didn't know to what extent, I didn't know if I'd been raped or what, really."

She says she spent years feeling ashamed after being told at the time that the attack, which occurred shortly after she had left a children's home, was her fault.

"Looking back, how I feel now is absolute disgust with predominantly Barnardo's for knowing this happened, for blaming me for it happening and doing nothing about it," she said.

She remained in the flat for a further six months and says her abuse by the men escalated over that time and included rape.

Greg Mulholland, the woman's MP, is demanding an investigation by Barnardo's and Leeds City Council for what he calls "shocking and utterly disgraceful" behaviour.

"To actually blame her for the most appalling abuse and grooming and indeed blackmail that she suffered is really appalling," he said.

"This woman who was then a 16-year-old girl, shortly out of care, very vulnerable, was seriously, seriously let down by the two organisations who were there to protect her."

In a statement Barnado's told us it was shocked at the contents of the letter.

The statement said: "This woman has been very brave in bringing this issue to light. It must have been a very difficult and distressing step to have taken after so many years.

"Barnardo's takes this very seriously and we will fully investigate."

Nigel Richardson, director of children's services at Leeds City Council, said: "We are very sorry to hear about what this young woman was subjected to."

He said the council was very keen to investigate the case, and added: "We are confident that an incident like this would be managed very differently today."

http://news.sky.com/story/1353924/barnardos-accused-of-blaming-victim-for-abuse

Totaly shocked.

**candyfloss** Tue 21 Oct 2014, 8:54 pm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0293xmj

Interview on above link.

Duration: 02:27

Simon Danczuk MP says Fiona Woolf should not be chairing the Child Abuse Inquiry because of her links to former Home Secretary Leon Brittan

**candyfloss** Wed 22 Oct 2014, 12:00 pm

22 October 2014 Last updated at 11:54

Legal challenge launched over abuse inquiry chair

Fiona Woolf told committee chairman Keith Vaz she wanted her behaviour to be regarded as ''open and transparent''
A victim of historical child sexual abuse has launched a legal challenge to the choice of Fiona Woolf as the chair of the inquiry investigating the issue.
A judicial review application, seen by the BBC, claims she is not impartial, has no relevant expertise and may not have time to discharge her duties.
Labour wants Mrs Woolf to meet abuse victims amid concerns over her links to former home secretary Lord Brittan.
Downing Street said it had "full confidence" in her doing the job.
The BBC's assistant political editor Norman Smith said he believed the government would do everything it could to "cling onto" Mrs Woolf given that her predecessor in the role had already stood down and the inquiry was being asked to produce an interim report by the end of March.
Questions have been asked about Mrs Woolf's suitability for the role given that she has no experience in child protection or family law and on Tuesday revealed that she had dined with Lord Brittan - home secretary in 1984 when ministers were handed a dossier on alleged high-profile paedophiles - five times since 2008.
The legal challenge to her appointment could be heard before the end of the year.
Judicial review is used to challenge the decisions of government and other organisations based on the law. Most applications don't get past the initial stage and are rejected by a judge.
'Lack of confidence'
The application comes amid calls from a number of MPs from different parties calling for her to consider her position.
Lib Dem MP John Hemming said Mrs Woolf's personal contacts "would give no confidence to the victims that have been ignored for many years" while Conservative Nadine Dorries tweeted that Mrs Woolf "no longer had full public and victim confidence".
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Mrs Woolf had dinner with Lord Brittan and his wife on five occasions
For Labour, shadow energy secretary Caroline Flint told the BBC's Daily Politics that it was "really difficult for her (Mrs Woolf) to stay" if survivors of child abuse did not support her.
The opposition is urging Mrs Woolf and Home Secretary Theresa May to meet survivors of abuse immediately to address their concerns.
Andi Lavery, who describes himself as a "survivor of abuse" at a school in the 1980s, told BBC Radio 4's Today that he had "zero confidence" in the inquiry, suggesting it had "no investigatory powers" and Mrs Woolf appeared "weak as water" when she was questioned by MPs on Tuesday.
'Credible'
And Alison Millar, whose law firm Leigh Day is representing victims of abuse, told Today: "This is not really about Fiona Woolf's ability or her integrity, this is about her independence and her ability to lead this inquiry in a way that is credible to the survivors of abuse.
"Somebody who seems to be on dinner party terms with a senior political figure whose knowledge this inquiry will be scrutinising is somebody who, from the perspective of my clients, does not have the necessary independence."
But Sharon Evans, a member of the inquiry panel, said it had "got off to a difficult start" but she was confident it was representative, with a QC and investigator from Her Majesty's Inspectors of Constabulary as well as people, like herself, with personal experience of abuse.
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Geoffrey Dickens served as a Conservative MP from 1979 until his death in 1995
"There are nine people on the panel with an enormous background and expertise in this job," Ms Evans, chief of the Dotcom Children's Foundation, told Today.
"There are victims on this panel and we are determined to get to the bottom of this. The fact that we are part of this will give people confidence and we will listen."
Home Office minister James Brokenshire said the inquiry should be allowed to get on with its work.
"Fiona Woolf is an excellent chair of the panel and backed up by a real panel of experts," he told the BBC News Channel.
"They have confidence in her. We have confidence in her.... people want answers on historical child sex abuse. We want the panel under Fiona Woolf's chairmanship to get on with the job and get those questions answered."
And Downing Street restated its support, saying it was sure that the panel "would look at all the ways" they could reassure victims of abuse that the inquiry was independent.
Dinners
Mrs Woolf, who is currently Lord Mayor of London, confirmed on Tuesday she lived in the same London street as Lord Brittan and had invited him and his wife to dinner on three occasions, and had two dinners at their house between 2008 and 2012.
But appearing before the home affairs committee of MPs on Tuesday, she said the Conservative peer was "one of thousands of people" she knew and not a "close associate".
Mrs Woolf was appointed after the government's original choice, Baroness Butler-Sloss, stepped down after victims' families expressed concerns about her independence.
Her late brother Lord Havers was attorney general at the time allegations about high-profile paedophiles were passed to ministers by the late Conservative MP Geoffrey Dickens.
The dossier was considered by Home Office officials in 1984 and handed to police but no action was taken and the information has since disappeared.
Lord Brittan has insisted that proper procedures were followed.
The inquiry, triggered by allegations of child sex abuse by public figures working in the media, politics and other walks of life, will examine the conduct of almost all major UK institutions

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-29719090

Lioned Thu 23 Oct 2014, 5:51 pm

Trying to find any honest liberal to Chair this inquiry is starting to look like turkeys voting For Christmas !

Theresa May is starting to look very silly.

Mimi Thu 23 Oct 2014, 9:46 pm

They make idioms of themselves by always choosing hoity toity toffs and of course they're always going to favour their own kind. I'd like to see someone like Simon danczuk head the enquiry with some uncorruptible ordinary people on the panel.

AndyB Thu 23 Oct 2014, 10:00 pm

Mimi wrote:They make idioms of themselves

Aye, there's a rabbit away for sure

Mimi Thu 23 Oct 2014, 10:48 pm

AndyB wrote:
Mimi wrote:They make idioms of themselves
Aye, there's a rabbit away for sure

Whoops didn't check that one did I

Guest Fri 31 Oct 2014, 5:08 pm

http://news.sky.com/story/1364389/woolf-quits-as-head-of-child-abuse-inquiry

She has quit....

Lioned Fri 31 Oct 2014, 10:15 pm

Fiona Woolf says its going to be really hard to find someone who is unconnected to the 'scandal'.

Suggests they find a Hermit to do the job !

So seems no squeaky clean Liberals likely to turn up then.

Guest Tue 04 Nov 2014, 6:34 am

Duped: What campaigners felt when they found abuse inquiry chief had secretly decided to resign - BEFORE emotional meeting
Abuse victims met Home Office officials to discuss Fiona Woolf controversy
But she made the decision to quit as abuse inquiry chairman days earlier
Mrs Woolf admitted she told Home Office of her plan to quit before meeting
Campaigners say they felt 'manipulated' into giving Mrs Woolf a graceful exit

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2817363/Duped-campaigners-felt-abuse-inquiry-chief-secretly-decided-resign-emotional-meeting.html#ixzz3I4xJdYH8
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