Calls for Watson to face investigation over false sex ring
Ex-tory MP calls for police to investigate former Labour deputy leader for misconduct in public office
TOM WATSON, the former Labour MP, should be investigated for misconduct in public office, it was suggested last night, after a report found no evidence of a Westminster paedophile ring.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) was set up six years ago after claims by Mr Watson.
In its report published yesterday, the IICSA said despite “an extensive evidence gathering process, we have seen no material indicating the existence of a Westminster paedophile ring”.
Harvey Proctor, the former Tory MP accused of child abuse in the wake of Mr Watson’s claims, called for him to be investigated over the damage caused and the cost to the public purse.
TOM WATSON, the former deputy Labour Party leader, came under fire last night after the £150million child sex abuse inquiry concluded that there was no evidence of a “powerful paedophile network” operating at the heart of Westminster.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), which was launched six years ago on the back of Mr Watson’s “lurid allegations”, concluded that while there were individual cases of wrongdoing, there was no organised VIP paedophile ring and no establishment cover-up.
Harvey Proctor, the former Conservative MP who was one of those falsely accused of child abuse in the wake of Mr Watson’s claims, accused him of “shamefully hoodwinking the country for his own personal and political position”.
The IICSA report suggested the political establishment had spent decades turning a “blind eye” to allegations of child sexual abuse within its ranks. But borrowing a phrase from Mr Watson’s 2012 Commons speech, the inquiry said it had found no evidence to support the most sensational allegations suggesting there had been “a powerful paedophile network operating within Westminster”.
The IICSA inquiry was launched by Theresa May in
July 2014 and is split into 15 separate strands, looking at alleged abuse and coverups in institutions including the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches and children’s homes.
But Mr Proctor said that while the other strands may prove beneficial, the Westminster part of the inquiry had turned out to be a “white elephant and an invisible one at that”.
He said Mr Watson should not receive his expected peerage and called on the police to the former MP for misconduct in public office over the damage his unfounded allegations caused. Scotland Yard spent 18 months investigating false allegations of abuse against a string of high profile politicians and public figures including Sir Edward Heath, the former prime minister, Lord Brittan, the ex-home secretary, Lord Bramall, a former head of the Army, and Mr Proctor.
Their accuser, Carl Beech, was jailed last summer for 18 years after being convicted of perverting the course of justice and fraud.
While the Westminster strand of IICSA found no evidence of an organised VIP paedophile ring, the report said there was “ample evidence of individual perpetrators”.
It claimed Margaret Thatcher, the former prime minister and Norman Tebbit the ex-party chairman of the Conservatives, had been aware of rumours about Tory MP Sir Peter Morrison having “a penchant for small boys” but did nothing about it. The report said the allegations “should have rung alarm bells in government”. But instead, it said, considerations of political embarrassment and security concerns had led them to overlook the activities of an alleged child abuser.
Sir Peter went on to become Mrs Thatcher’s parliamentary private secretary and was knighted in 1991. The report also flagged up the case of Victor Montagu, the former MP for South Dorset and the 10th Earl of Sandwich, who was let off with a caution in the 1970s after being accused of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old boy. Sir Peter Hayman, a diplomat, who was a member of the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE), also escaped with a caution after being charged with sending obscene material through the post.
The report also concluded that PIE was given “foolish and misguided support” for several years by organisations who should have known better, such as the National Council for Civil Liberties and the Albany Trust. The report concluded that these were examples of a “political culture which values its reputation far higher than the fate of the children involved”.
Prof Alexis Jay, the chairman of the inquiry, said: “It is clear to see that Westminster institutions have repeatedly failed to deal with allegations of child sexual abuse, from turning a blind eye to actively shielding abusers. A con-investigate sistent pattern emerged of failures to put the welfare of children above political status, although we found no evidence of an organised network of paedophiles within government.
“We hope this report and its recommendations will lead political institutions to prioritise the needs and safety of vulnerable children.”
‘Westminster institutions have repeatedly failed to deal with allegations of child sexual abuse’