More than 2,000 paedophiles let off

MORE than 2,000 paedophiles have been let off with cautions over the last decade, The Daily Telegraph can reveal, as Britain’s most senior child protection police officer admits forces cannot cope with the volume of offences.

Chief Constable Simon Bailey, of Norfolk Police, said people who viewed indecent images of children online but posed no direct threat to youngsters should not be prosecuted and could receive a criminal caution instead.

He said that, with police having to deal with 400 cases a month, they were in danger of being overwhelmed and needed to find alternative ways of dealing with paedophiles. But figures from the Ministry of Justice reveal that hundreds of paedophiles are already being let off with cautions each year.

Since 2005 at least 2,500 offenders have accepted cautions, despite forces urging sex abuse victims to come forward, saying their complaints will be taken serious- ly. Mr Bailey, who takes the lead on child protection for the National Police Chiefs Council, stressed that anyone directing abuse should feel the full weight of the law, but they could not prosecute everyone viewing images.

But Yvette Cooper, the chair of the home affairs select committee, has written to Mr Bailey to demand assurances that the police are not scaling back on action against offenders.

In her letter she said Mr Bailey’s comments were “of great concern” to the crossparty committee, adding: “As you will know, for many decades, institutions have put children at risk because it was seen as too difficult, not a priority or resources were insufficient to keep them safe. I would not want to see the same happen over online child abuse.”

She also asked him to provide evidence of his claim that police were able to tell which offenders might move on from viewing indecent images to attacking children.