Keir Starmer has insisted he still has faith in Jess Phillips after a fifth victim quit the grooming gangs inquiry panel. The woman, using the pen name Gaia Cooper, reportedly complained of receiving 'no support' and accused the process of being used as a 'political battering ram'.
The latest departure follows four other survivors demanding Phillips be sacked amid 'cover-up' claims. In a letter to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, they alleged that Phillips had labelled claims of a watered-down remit as 'untrue' despite evidence to the contrary. The survivors stated that 'evidence has since proven we were telling the truth'.
Despite the pressure, Starmer and Health Secretary Wes Streeting have publicly backed Phillips. Starmer said, 'Yes, of course, I do. Jess has been working on issues involving violence against women and girls for many, many years.' Streeting added, 'There is no one better for that job than Jess Phillips.'
In a striking development, five other panel members have threatened to walk away if Phillips is ousted. The Guardian reported that this group, including a woman abused in Oldham from age 12, said Phillips had 'devoted her life to hearing and amplifying the voices of women and girls who would have otherwise been unheard'.
The four survivors who quit laid out five conditions for their return, including Phillips's resignation, a judge as chair, and a mental health professional as victim liaison lead. They said, 'We will not participate in an inquiry that repeats those same patterns of dismissal, secrecy, and institutional self-protection.'
