Bridget Phillipson slams Tory bid to block safeguarding bill

EDUCATION SECRETARY Bridget Phillipson has criticised the Conservatives’ attempt to amend the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, describing it as “utterly sickening.”

The proposed amendment seeks a new UK-wide statutory inquiry into grooming gangs, despite a seven-year independent review led by Professor Alexis Jay concluding in 2022.

Phillipson told the BBC the amendment would halt the bill’s progress, which she described as “the single biggest piece of children safeguarding legislation in a generation.”

The bill includes measures to improve protections for vulnerable children, such as stricter home-schooling rules, better support for children in care, and oversight of private education institutions.

Professor Jay said victims want action, not another inquiry, and the government has stated it prefers implementing her review’s recommendations. The amendment, backed by Elon Musk, is unlikely to pass due to Labour’s large majority.

Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick argued that the scale of grooming gangs is larger than previously known, citing suspicions in at least 50 towns.

Phillipson criticised him for past failures as a Home Office minister, saying he should “hang his head in shame.”

Keir Starmer also condemned the amendment, calling it a “shocking tactic” in an interview with the Daily Mirror.