Jess Phillips rejected a request to meet with Oldham Council as it requested government support to investigate the town’s grooming gangs scandal, GB News can reveal.
The Safeguarding Minister wrote to the local authority in December to say that neither her nor the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper would be able to meet the council leadership “due to the demands on our time.”
The letter was sent over two months after Oldham’s chief executive wrote to Cooper requesting a meeting on how the council could improve its safeguarding services.
Instead of a meeting with the ministers, Phillips suggested to the executive that “engagement with other areas that have commissioned successful local inquiries would be more helpful for you at this stage.”
Instead of a meeting with the ministers, Jess Phillips suggested to the executive that engagement with other areas that have commissioned successful local inquiries would be more helpful for you at this stage'
PA
The note ends by saying: “I wish you every success in your pursuit of restoring public confidence in the services that Oldham Council is providing to safeguard and protect children.”
The letter was sent two weeks before national coverage of the grooming gangs scandal erupted following a GB News exclusive revealed that Phillips had rejected a request from Oldham for a government-led inquiry.
Following intense political and media pressure, the government announced that the government would fund a local inquiry in Oldham.
Following this scrutiny, it appears that both ministers found time in their diaries to meet with Oldham executives.
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Following intense political and media pressure, the government announced that the government would fund a local inquiry in Oldham (stock pic)
GB NEWS
In a letter sent in April, Phillips refers to “when we last met in February.”
Elliot Keck, head of campaigns at the TaxPayers’ Alliance which uncovered the letter, said: “The millions of Brits who have been horrified by the scale of this problem will be livid that Jess Phillips couldn’t spare an hour to meet with Oldham council to discuss the issue back in December.
“This is one of the most pressing issues in her brief, and taxpayers will be wondering why they’re paying her wages if she is willing to refuse such a basic demand on her time.
“It's notable that she met with the council in February, suggesting it required headlines to get a spot in her diary.”
Following this scrutiny, it appears that both ministers found time in their diaries to meet with Oldham executives (stock pic)
GB NEWS
GB News has approached the Home Office for comment.
