‘There have to be no weak hyperlinks’ – James Cleverly vows to go after evil grooming gangs | Politics | News | EUROtoday

James Cleverly has warned paedophile gangs “we are coming for you” as he condemned their evil crimes.

The Home Secretary stated the grooming gang scandals are a “national scandal”, with folks raped and abused “left to fend for themselves”.

Mr Cleverly hailed the outcomes of the Grooming Gangs Taskforce – which has led to the arrest of greater than 550 suspected youngster predators in its first 12 months – and declared extra will find yourself in handcuffs.

But he insisted the entire legal justice system “needs to work as one to vanquish this evil” and that “there can be no weak links”.

He advised the Daily Express: “Some of the most vulnerable children and young people were treated with a contempt that defies words.

“Raped and brutalised by gangs, they were left to fend for themselves by people whose job it was to look out for their wellbeing and intervene when they were being harmed.

“It is a national scandal. Every possible effort must be made to ensure it cannot happen again. That’s why the Government took action.

“My message to perpetrators is simple: we are coming for you. And my message to everyone else is that we must not and will not let down children ever again.”

The Grooming Gangs Taskforce has additionally helped to guard greater than 4,000 victims from sexual exploitation because it was first arrange by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in April 2023, the Home Office stated.

The unit is made up of specialists and specialist officers who’ve been working with all 43 police forces in England and Wales to help youngster sexual exploitation and grooming investigations.

Led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and supported by the National Crime Agency, the taskforce is a full-time, operational police unit funded by the Home Office to enhance how the police examine grooming gangs and establish and defend kids from abuse.

It is staffed by skilled and certified officers and knowledge analysts who’ve long-term, sensible on-the-ground expertise of enterprise investigations into grooming gangs.

More than 400 officers throughout the nation have now been specifically educated by the taskforce, with extra set to be mobilised over the approaching months to root out youngster intercourse offenders.

And Mr Cleverly advised this newspaper: “Crucially, the Taskforce works closely with the Crown Prosecution Service to build stronger prosecution cases as well as providing intelligence for forces to help identify and disrupt grooming gang networks.

“The whole criminal justice system needs to work as one to vanquish this evil. There can be no weak links.”

The Criminal Justice Bill is “better protecting children”, he added, by requiring all professionals to report fears of abuse to police and banning intercourse offenders from altering their names.