Lead Counsel to Child Sexual Abuse Inquiry Resigns after Suspension
By Sandra Laville
The prime minister has stepped in to shore up the struggling national inquiry into child abuse, saying it was a crucial investigation to stop more children becoming victims in the future. Theresa May insisted on Thursday that the inquiry, which she set up while she was home secretary, would not be scaled back. She spoke following the suspension of the most senior counsel to the inquiry, Ben Emmerson QC, on Wednesday night over concerns about his leadership. After May spoke out, the new chair of the inquiry, Alexis Jay, announced that she had accepted Emmerson’s resignation. Any disciplinary investigation will now fall away. In his resignation letter Emmerson made no reference to the chaos of the last two days. He said he would be “sad” to leave and remained “totally committed to securing a fair and just result for those who matter most – the victims and survivors of childhood abuse”. He said shortly after Jay’s appointment that she had announced a review of the approach of the inquiry in order to identify changes that may be necessary. Hinting at a dispute between them over the way forward, he said: “I had my personal doubts about whether I was genuinely the right person to steer that review process. Since then, it has become clear to me that I am not the person to take this review forward on your behalf.” May chose to speak out in support of the inquiry on a visit to meet serving soldiers in Bulford, Wiltshire. She said: “We need to investigate, we need to learn the lessons of the past and if we don’t do that we can’t guarantee we are going to be able to stop such abuse from happening again in the future.” The developments of the last 48 hours, coming after the departure in the summer of Lowell Goddard, the third chair of the inquiry, left many survivors saying they were losing faith in the ability of the inquiry to carry out its work. It also emerged that two weeks ago another lawyer, Emmerson’s deputy, junior counsel Elizabeth Prochaska, resigned from the inquiry team. She said on Thursday: “I resigned from my position as junior counsel with effect from 15 September 2016. I very much valued the experience of working with the inquiry and I wish all my former colleagues the best as they continue their work.” Survivors’ groups spoke of their grave concerns at the latest setback to the operation of the inquiry, many citing Emmerson as a bold and independent counsel prepared to listen to them and stand up for them. Jay attempted to reassure victims in a statement. “We are aware that recent events are unsettling, particularly for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse and all those who are engaged with the inquiry’s work,” the statement said. “It has been said that the inquiry is in crisis. This is simply not the case, and the chair and panel are united in their determination to see this important work through to a conclusion.” Jay’s review is aimed at exploring new ways to deliver the inquiry’s work while remaining within its original remit to investigate to what extent state and non-state institutions covered up child abuse and allowed it to take place. The inquiry statement said: “We are fortunate to have an excellent team of solicitors and barristers working for the inquiry, and we are currently reviewing our approach to our investigations so that we can deliver results in a timely and effective way,” the statement said. “Our terms of reference provide the flexibility needed to get on with the job of addressing institutional failure.” Peter Garsden, a solicitor who represents 16 alleged victims of Greville Janner, said he feared the latest setback to the progress of the inquiry could harm the recovery of some victims, many of whom had lost faith in the process completely. “Speculation around [Emmerson’s] ... future with the inquiry was yet another damaging development, following the multiple resignations of chairpersons,” he said. “The suspension of someone they [victims] have invested their fragile faith in will undoubtedly affect their mood, attitude and ultimate trust in the inquiry.” On Friday, the victims and survivors panel will meet the inquiry team at their offices in Millbank, central London. Peter Saunders, of the National Association for People Abused in Childhood, said the departure of Emmerson was obviously a challenge for the inquiry and the victims panel would be seeking reassurances from the inquiry. “There are going to be plenty of people who want to see this inquiry fail, but it is too important to fail. Ben Emmerson, from what we saw, was a strong, determined counsel to the inquiry and he was very open and accessible to us.” The inquiry has yet to take any evidence at its public hearings, which are not due to start until 2017. Ian McFadyen, an abuse survivor who was involved in discussions with May at the start of the inquiry process, said he had concerns about the independence of the inquiry and its openness as it faced catastrophe after catastrophe. “This is supposed to be an independent inquiry and yet at the heart of it still there are government and Home Office staff. Ben Emmerson was a robust guy and survivors felt that he was suited to the job,” said McFadyen. He said the inquiry panel and chair needed to move quickly to complete their review and decide what the remit of the investigations should be.
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