(UNITED KINGDOM)
PressReader [Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada]
August 5, 2026
By Adam Toms, Daily Press
AN ABUSE victim says that he doubts he will live to see ministers enact recommendations of a nationwide inquiry.
Glaswegian Rafael Viola, 67, moved to England in 1969 and was subjected to “unspeakable” abuse at Catholic schools in the West Midlands.
He provided a witness statement to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse by Professor Alexis Jay, published in 2022.
Now, he has said Prime Minister Andy Burnham needs to enact all of its recommendations, such as a redress scheme for survivors.
Mr Viola said: “That inquiry cost £200million. Nothing came out of the inquiry, nothing at all.
“Twenty recommendations were put forward to the government. This government has shelved these recommendations.”
He told Mr Burnham: “Survivors’ lives, they matter. This is your chance now to show the British public what kind of man you are.”
Mr Viola said there is “no help” for victims and he suffers “traumatisation all the time”.
Sir Keir Starmer announced a national inquiry into grooming gangs following an audit by Baroness
Louise Casey. The former prime minister initially said that the Jay inquiry was sufficient but U-turned after critics suggested it did not go far enough. Mr Viola is sceptical about the new inquiry. He said: “They’ve got to finish off this old inquiry. I was a core participant in that inquiry. We got silenced.
“Nothing is done about this old inquiry, and you’re going to have a new inquiry that’s going to cost £60million. “£60million is going to turn into £100million and you’re going to have the same problem. These inquiries are not fit for purpose.”
He said the guidelines and recommendations not acted on include an Independent Child Protection Authority, Cabinet minister for children and fully funded therapy guarantee.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are committed to tackling the horrors of child sexual abuse and exploitation and recognise the immense courage of victims and survivors.
“We have introduced mandatory reporting, made grooming a statutory aggravating factor in sentencing and a nationwide police operation is looking again at closed cases to bring vile offenders to justice.”