Government's child sex abuse inquiry is TOO BIG to uncover the truth, former chair warns 

  • Dame Lowell Goddard gives damning assessment of inquiry's prospects
  • Says should be remodelled to focus on current issues instead of historical
  • New Zealand judge quit as chair of the wide-ranging probe last month 
  • Has been replaced by Alexis Jay, who wrote Rotherham abuse report 

By James Tapsfield, Political Editor For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

The government's child sex abuse inquiry is too big to uncover the truth, its former chairman has warned.

Dame Lowell Goddard, who resigned last month, delivered a damning assessment of the probe's prospect of success.

The New Zealand high court judge is the third chief to quit the inquiry - which was set up amid claims of an establishment cover-up following allegations that a paedophile ring operated in Westminster in the 1980s.

Dame Lowell Goddard, a New Zealand high court judge, resigned from the inquiry last month 

Dame Lowell Goddard, a New Zealand high court judge, resigned from the inquiry last month 

The wide-ranging review was launched in by Theresa May 2014.

Baroness Butler-Sloss and Dame Fiona Woolf had previously stepped aside from the job. 

In a letter to the Home Affairs Select Committee, Dame Lowell said: 'With the benefit of hindsight, or more realistically the benefit of experience, it is clear there is an inherent problem in the sheer scale and size of the inquiry (which its budget does not match) and therefore in its manageability.'

According to The Times, which saw the memo, she added: 'I have recommended in my report to the Home Secretary that my departure provides a timely opportunity to undertake a complete review of the inquiry in its present form, with a view to remodelling it and recalibrating its emphasis more towards current events and thus focusing major attention on the present and future protection of children.'

In a statement after quitting she said there had been a 'legacy of failure which has been very hard to shake off'.

The inquiry was given a budget of £17.9 million for 2015/16 and has been described as the most ambitious public inquiry ever in England and Wales. It was estimated to take five years, but there have been suggestions it could run for as long as a decade.

After her resignation Dame Lowell was asked to go before the Home Affairs Select Committee to explain her departure.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd is due to appear before the committee on Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the Home Office said: 'The independent inquiry has a vital role to play in exposing the failure of public bodies and other major organisations to prevent systematic child sexual abuse.

'Our commitment to this inquiry is undiminished. We owe it to victims and survivors to confront the appalling reality of how children were let down by the very people who were charged to protect them and to learn from the mistakes of the past.'

'Last month, the Home Secretary accepted the resignation of Dame Lowell Goddard and appointed Professor Alexis Jay as chair. She has a strong track record in uncovering the truth and it is essential that she is able to get on with the important job of delivering justice to those that deserve it.'

The wide-ranging child sex abuse inquiry was launched by then-home secretary Theresa May in 2014

The wide-ranging child sex abuse inquiry was launched by then-home secretary Theresa May in 2014

Professor Alexis Jay, who wrote the report on abuse in Rotherham, has been named as the new chair of the inquiry

Professor Alexis Jay, who wrote the report on abuse in Rotherham, has been named as the new chair of the inquiry

 

 

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