Telford scandal must be the last
# AFTER the cases in Rochdale and Rotherham, it seemed there couldn’t be any worse incidents of largescale child abuse in Britain, but apparently this isn’t so.
The Telford grooming gang scandal has once again illustrated how reports of child abuse met inaction from the police and how council services took a disrespectful attitude towards the victims.
Why was this? The Mirror’s exposure of Telford has shown child trafficking and abuse exists on a national scale in the UK.
Those responsible should be given life sentences and any professionals who have failed to protect victims through inaction should face disciplinary measures. Diane Silva, Lytham, Lancs # The horrifying abuse suffered by those young girls in Telford is made far worse by police and social services turning a blind eye to what was going on. These two organisations are meant to be at the forefront of ensuring the safety of children. It’s bad enough they suffered abuse, but to then be dismissed as liars and prostitutes defies belief. There is no excuse whatsoever for inaction. This needs a thorough investigation and preferably a public inquiry. K D Thornhill South East London # The brutality visited on young girls in Telford is as repulsive as the lack of effective action that has been taken since previous cases were exposed. There needs to be a special nationwide unit, with FBI-style powers, to investigate and destroy all criminal gangs exploiting our children for sex, slavery and drug trafficking.
Sending new directives to already underfunded care workers, police, teachers and medical staff is not an adequate response to this scandal. John Shale, Wigan # When are councils going to catch on that they cannot just sweep this abuse under the carpet? There is no excuse. They need to get moving and get this country back to being a safe place for everyone. All children have a right to feel safe. Margaret McAlister Rotherham # When will this Government ever learn that what happened in Telford, Rotherham, Newcastle and Oxfordshire is just the tip of the iceberg?
These paedophile rings look on their victims as inferior beings and treat them as such, no matter what their age. As far as they are concerned, they are there to be used and abused and they do so with no remorse. Roger Grant Thurnscoe, South Yorks # Like the victims of Rochdale and Rotherham before them, these girls have not only been sexually abused but they’ve been ignored and dismissed by those who are meant to protect them. If they had been middle class, the response of the police and social services would have been very different. Deborah Hull, via email # What is happening on the streets in the UK these days with gangs grooming our young girls like they were in Telford? How can these men get away with it? And then a Russian father and daughter are poisoned on the streets of Salisbury. It is very scary. What is the Government going to do to make our streets safer? Mike Minchella, Scarborough