Telford child sex abuse: MP urges councillors to support local independent inquiry

The motion which will be put forward by Conservative councillors is expected to win cross-party support.

The emergency meeting of the council is taking place at Oakengates Theatre from 6pm.

Telford & Wrekin Council leader Shaun Davies says any inquiry into sex abuse in the town would be better than no inquiry at all, but bringing the national inquiry to Telford would still be the preferred option.

In an open letter to all Telford and Wrekin councillors, Ms Allan said: "We now know that child sexual exploitation is still happening in Telford.

"We now know the authorities do not always respond as we would hope.

"We now know that in addition to Operation Chalice, there have been other operations in Telford: not all victims got justice, not all perpetrators were charged, not all those affected have come forward.

"Anyone who has listened to a family, a victim or survivor will tell you the time to act is now.

"I urge all councillors to come together with the community and unequivocally support the proposal that a local independent inquiry be held and be held now."

Councillor Charles Smith, Telford & Wrekin Council’s speaker, said that after the council has debated the motion, members of the public will be allowed to speak.

He said: "I am aware that Lucy Allan is among those who rightly feels extremely strongly about this issue and I will welcome her contribution following the debate.

Waiting

“After contributions from the public, there will be a 15-minute break and then full council will resume to conduct business from the previous meeting that was adjourned due to wintry weather.”

Councillor Andrew Eade, leader of the Tory opposition, has stressed that waiting on the national inquiry to come to Telford is "simply not good enough".

Councillor Nicola Lowery, who represents the Ironbridge Gorge, added: “We greatly welcome the Truth Project coming to Telford, as this will provide survivors with a voice and support.

"However, this is not an inquiry and we cannot continue to wait for the national inquiry to make a decision on whether or not they intend to investigate Telford.

"As corporate parents and elected members on Telford & Wrekin Council, it is for us to show leadership and reassure our communities that lessons have been learnt and that we fully understand the scale of child sexual exploitation taking place in Telford.

“The council needs to agree to commission an inquiry now.

"A locally-led inquiry would enable the terms of reference to look specifically at what happened and is happening here in Telford, therefore it is vital that we begin this to ensure public confidence in our local authority and institutions is restored and survivors can be reassured that lessons have been learnt."

The Truth Project is set to come to Telford in the coming months and will give victims the chance to speak with representatives of the national Jay Inquiry.

Councillor Davies says a council-led inquiry will not have the ability to force people to talk to it and it would not be able to force other organisations to co-operate.

He said any council-led inquiry would have to be completely independent.