Counsel to Child Sexual Abuse Inquiry Suspended Amid "Leadership Concerns"

By Sandra Laville and Owen Bowcott
The Guardian
September 28, 2016

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/sep/28/ben-emmerson-counsel-child-sexual-abuse-inquiry-sacked-concerns-over-leadership

Ben Emmerson QC has been suspended from duty on the public inquiry into child abuse, a statement said. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images

The most senior lawyer on the public inquiry into institutional child abuse in England and Wales was suddenly suspended on Wednesday over what the inquiry said were concerns over aspects of his leadership.

Ben Emmerson QC had been expected to resign in the coming days, apparently over disagreements over the remit of the inquiry under its fourth chair, Alexis Jay. But in a move that surprised those close to the discussions, the inquiry announced late on Wednesday that Emmerson, a respected human rights lawyer, was to be suspended and put under investigation.

“The inquiry has recently become very concerned about aspects of Mr Emmerson’s leadership of the counsel team,” the statement from the independent inquiry said.

“He has therefore been suspended from duty so that these can be properly investigated. Suggestions in the press that Mr Emmerson was considering resigning after raising disagreements over the future direction of the inquiry are untrue. They are not a matter on which he has advised the chair or panel.”

Whatever the reasons behind Emmerson’s suspension, the apparent secrecy surrounding events is the latest issue to cause concern among victims’ groups.

Lawyers acting for Emmerson said: “Mr Emmerson has read this evening on the internet that he has been suspended from the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse. If, and when, allegations are put to him, he will respond appropriately.”

An inquiry spokeswoman refused to elaborate when asked why Emmerson had been suspended and what allegations had been made about his behaviour.

David Enright and Sam Stein QC, lawyers representing 20% of the victims who have core participant status in the ?100m inquiry, said: “Our clients have been, and remain, deeply concerned that the inquiry continues to make important decisions behind closed doors and without consultation with survivors.”

They called for Emmerson to stay working as lead counsel – to bring “intellectual weight, honesty and integrity to the inquiry”.

Enright said: “We call on the home secretary and chair of IICSA [the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse] to engage actively and urgently to find a way forward that secures the confidence of survivors and provides the inquiry’s legal team with the resources and support they need to deliver justice and truth that survivors deserve.”

Stein said his clients were “deeply disatisfied” with aspects of how the inquiry had been conducted but called for Emmerson to stay, adding: “I urge the home secretary to seek to find a way in which his valuable contribution can be maintained”.

The suspension is the latest in a damning series of resignations and setbacks that have beset the inquiry from its outset two years ago. The third chair to be appointed, Dame Lowell Goddard, resigned suddenly in the summer, saying it was beset with a “legacy of failure”. In a 10-page critique she said its remit should be narrowed to focus not on detailed investigations into past abuse but on how to protect children now and in the future.

On Wednesday night, the Home Office moved to reassure victims that the inquiry – which was launched two years ago by the then home secretary Theresa May – was continuing. They issued a statement as behind-the-scenes negotiations took place among leading figures in the inquiry team.

Jay, the fourth person to chair the public investigation since it began its business more than a year ago, is herself under criticism from some victims who question whether a former senior social worker is independent enough to lead an inquiry that will be investigating decisions made by social services across the country.

The suspension of Emmerson leaves a vacuum at the inquiry, which has set up 13 major investigations into abuse within the Roman Catholic Church and Church of England; Westminster; children’s homes in Lambeth; detention centres; schools and the armed forces, among many other institutions. They began earlier this year with preliminary hearings but no evidence has yet been heard.

Last night, the Home Office said: “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.”