SCOTLAND
Herald Scotland
Editorial
The Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry has had a rocky history. With a huge remit, by June this year it had run up costs of £1.8 million, yet had still to hear from the vast majority of witnesses.
With key appointments concluded last October, by July it had lost two out of its three key panel members. The acrimonious resignation of the Chair Susan O’Brien QC followed within a week that of one of her deputies.
Separately, the Scottish Government has yet to legislate, as it has promised to do, to resolve legal issues that prevent many victims from pursuing civil claims against their abusers.
Despite claims of consultation, there is widespread unhappiness about the Survivor Scotland model being proposed for supporting people who may be traumatised by memories re-awoken during the inquiry process.
The inquiry has to satisfy diverse groups representing adult victims of abuse, many of whom have lasting difficulties as a result of what happened to them at children. It is fair to say that confidence in its ability to do so is at an all time low.
So the revelation that a key official at the heart of arrangements for the inquiry appears to have lost the confidence of many of those due to take part in the inquiry is a major problem. Jennifer McPherson is alleged to have made disparaging comments to some historic abuse victims, and been dismissive of their concerns.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.