Starmer facing mutiny as 1 in 3 Labour voters raise concerns about multiculturalism over grooming gangs row

The measures fall short of a new national inquiry into the grooming gang scandal - which many survivors and the opposition have been calling for - but a three-month audit will be conducted to assess the scale and severity of abuses, and the Government will support local inquiries into the scandal.

Starmer will hope these new measures dampen the demand for a national inquiry and that the scandal has been amplified by the "far-right", as he put it in his initial response to Elon Musk's barrage of tweets, and it does not reflect broader public opinion.

However, new polling shared exclusively with GB News by Friderichs Advisory and JL Partners suggests Starmer's critics are not confined to a fringe corner of the internet.

When respondents were asked how strongly they agreed or disagreed with the following statement: I have become more sceptical about multiculturalism since hearing about the grooming gangs scandal.

Thirteen per cent of Labour voters strongly agreed with this statement, while 23 per cent somewhat agreed. This amounts to more than one in three red voters.

Reform UK voters had become most sceptical in the wake of the grooming gangs scandal, while Conservative voters trailed closely behind the insurgent party.

It's too early to say what this means for Labour's electoral prospects, not least because the polling also found more than half (51 per cent) of Britons had not fundamentally changed their view on multiculturalism since the grooming gangs scandal.

However, there are early warning signs. The Friderichs Advisory and JL Partners polling found the public are generally concerned about potential cultural tensions and almost half of British voters (44 per cent) have lost trust in the Government since the grooming gangs scandal resurfaced.

The polling also found the majority of Britons still want a new national inquiry, with 73 per cent in favour and 14 per cent opposed.

In a further blow to the PM, voters have greater 'trust' in Farage and Reform to handle a national inquiry.

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When asked: 'Which political party would you trust most to handle a national inquiry into the grooming gangs scandal?'

Twenty-three per cent of respondents plumped for Reform, pipping Labour to the post by one percentage point.

The Conservatives trailed in third place with 16 per cent of the vote and Lib Dems came last with a paltry nine per cent of the vote.