Real number of FGM cases revealed... only FOUR
ONLY four confirmed cases of female genital mutilation have been carried out in the UK in two years, a study funded by the Department of Health has found.
It said the numbers were lower than expected, with very few women showing symptoms.
The research raises questions over whether the procedure is as common in Britain as campaigners claim.
Charities had previously suggested there were up to 137,000 FGM victims but many cases have since turned out to be legal piercings.
Researchers in the latest study, by University College London and Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital, looked at the number of cases of FGM reported by doctors and GPs between November 2015 and November 2017. They identified 61 confirmed instances in the two years. But 57 of these were carried out abroad, with only four being performed in the UK.
The research – published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood – concluded: ‘Numbers reported were lower than expected for UK estimated prevalence, with fewer physical and mental health symptoms than anticipated.
‘Further information is needed to determine illegality under UK law.’ FGM describes the ritual of cutting young girls’ genitalia in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
It is illegal in Britain although was thought to be being carried out in some immigrant communities.
The Department of Health’s own figures last month showed the vast majority of FGM cases were in fact legal piercings.
Of 5,391 newly-recorded cases of FGM found by GPs and NHS trusts in the year to March 2017, only 57 were performed in the UK. But 50 of these were in the category for piercings while the other seven did not involve cutting, and all the women whose ages were known were over 18.
A spokesman for children’s charity the NSPCC said at the time: ‘We know from calls to our dedicated helpline that female genital mutilation is still affecting hundreds of girls in the UK.
‘For far too long female genital cutting has been cloaked in secrecy so the true picture of how many girls are affected is unknown.’
On Friday the Daily Mail told how a lawyer was cleared at the Old Bailey of using FGM to punish his daughter after recruiting an amateur surgeon, as prosecutors failed for a third time to secure a conviction for such a crime. The girl told police she was attacked at home, but the solicitor from West Africa blamed his estranged wife for ‘coaching’ their children to lie about him.
It came barely a month after a similar case collapsed at Bristol Crown Court. The only other case, against an NHS doctor, also ended in acquittal in 2015.
Father is cleared of FGM as third prosecution fails