Yvette Cooper MP, Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary, commenting on failures to tackle child abuse, said:
“It is scandalous that the criminal justice system in this country is failing to pursue and prosecute child abusers and the Home Secretary has ignored repeated warnings about the scale of the problem. Children are still being abused as a result of this failure. I have urged Theresa May repeatedly to act on this appalling problem and I do not understand why she is refusing to do so.
“The National Crime Agency has details on over 20,000 potential child abusers but has arrested less than 700 and has no intention of investigating them all. Now we know police forces across the country are also failing to investigate and arrest child abusers even where there is clear evidence against them.
“This is a shameful failure to stand up for victims. We need a massive change in culture, priority, organisation and funding for child protection work.
“It is clear Theresa May’s National Crime Agency and forces across the country are just not giving this the priority it needs. But it is also clear that there are far too few police officers working in child protection.
"We need action from the Home Secretary not silence. This is too serious to ignore – the victims deserve better.”