UK lawmakers vote against inquiry into ‘rape gang scandal’ as Musk keeps up pressure

British legislators voted against launching a national inquiry into the UK’s gang-groom scandal on Wednesday, after objections to the way the vote was delivered – and amid international scrutiny of the crisis led by Elon Musk.

The House of Commons has voted in an amendment to launch a statutory inquiry into the scandal – which found men of predominantly Pakistani origin sexually assaulted girls in towns in northern England for years.

The measure was an amendment to the Child Welfare and Schools Bill backed by the Labor government. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned that a vote for the amendment would kill the entire bill it is attached to. The amendment was rejected by 364 votes to 111 in the Labour-controlled house, Sky News reported.

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“What we need now is action. What cannot be tolerated is the idea that this afternoon MPs on the opposite side will vote against a bill that protects children,” Starmer said before the vote, calling it a “devastating amendment”.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer addresses members at the Labor Party conference in Liverpool, England, on Tuesday. (AP)

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch retaliated.

“Be a leader, not a lawyer,” she told him, saying the new inquiry should look into related issues between the cities.

“The reason a national inquiry is important is that this issue is systemic,” she said, involving “local and national officials, police, prosecutors and politicians.”

“These interrelated issues cannot be covered by local investigations alone,” she said.

Previous reports found evidence of “appalling” abuse, with more than 1,400 girls abused between 1997 and 2013 in Rotherham alone. Reports also indicated that the authorities were afraid of inciting racism in their handling of crimes due to the ethnic makeup of the perpetrators. The scandal led to concerns about multiculturalism and mass immigration.

The issue recently returned to the spotlight after local officials in Oldham called on the government to launch a national inquiry into the town’s handling of the crisis. A 2022 report found officials had failed children but found no cover-up despite concerns it would be exploited by right-wing activists.

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The UK government rejected the request, saying any investigation should be organized locally. This in turn attracted calls from Badenoch and Elon Musk for a national investigation.

The Palace of Westminster, the House of Parliament, in the heart of London.

“Across the country, thousands of girls have been tortured and sexually abused by men who have treated them as things to be used and thrown away, ruining many lives forever. The Prime Minister referred to previous investigations. He is right, there have been investigations into child sexual abuse, but it was not a gang-rape scandal,” Badenoch said.

Musk, who has railed about the issue on X – even calling for the prosecution of top British government officials, including Starmer – again appealed to the British public ahead of the vote.

President-elect Trump and Elon Musk attend the SpaceX Starship launch on November 19, 2024 in Brownsville, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

“Please call your member of parliament and tell them that the hundreds of thousands of little girls in Britain who have been, and still are, systematically, horrifically gang-raped, deserve some justice in this world,” Musk said on X on Wednesday.

“This is vitally important or it’s just going to keep happening,” he said.

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Starmer had previously lashed out at “lies and misinformation” without naming Musk directly, and accused British politicians of jumping into the “far right”.

On Wednesday, he again accused Badenoch of jumping the gun and urged lawmakers to ensure passage of the broader bill.

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“One of the provisions in the bill is to protect vulnerable children who are out of school today to prevent abuse from ever leaving those children out of school. I implore members to the contrary to defy the misleading leadership of the Leader of the Opposition and vote for a really important bill.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.