A senior civil servant liaising with Oldham Council on the local grooming gang inquiry has proposed a so-called "truth project" as an alternative to a full investigation.
GB News can reveal that the civil servant has suggested the truth project instead of an inquiry in multiple meetings with senior Oldham officials, including as recently as August.
A truth project, modelled on the same provision during the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, would give victims an opportunity to disclose their experiences.
During the IICSA process, the truth project heard testimony from victims in person and remotely.
They were not questioned nor challenged. The information they provided was not verified or tested and it was kept confidentially.
This broadcaster understands that Oldham Council has continued to seek guidance from the government on its inquiry and what form it might take.
On January 16, the former Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that Oldham would have a local inquiry alongside up to four other towns.
In April, the government sparked controversy by suggesting that the local inquiries could instead become “locally-led work” following “feedback from local authorities,” which were understood to be hesitant about permitting inquiries.
In June, after Baroness Louise Casey recommended a national inquiry in her audit of group-based child sexual exploitation, hopes were revitalised that Oldham would be one of the first to get a green light for the investigation to start.
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Oldham Council has continued to seek guidance from the government on its inquiry and what form it might take
| GOOGLEBut local sources in the town have told GB News that the process has been fraught with delay and uncertainty.
The latest attempt to propose a truth project instead of an inquiry has attracted a furious response from survivors and campaigners in the town.
Jamie Leigh Jones, who was targeted by gangs of men from the age of 12, told GB News that any attempt to “downplay” the inquiry would undermine the trust of survivors.
He said: “It is essential that this inquiry is statutory and independent, survivors will not have confidence in anything less.
"The only way to ensure genuine accountability is for it to be survivor-led, with survivors working directly and closely with Tom Crowther [the barrister appointed by the government to head up the inquiry]."
On January 16, the former Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that Oldham would have a local inquiry alongside up to four other towns
| GB News/ House of CommonsShe added: “To achieve the best outcome, survivors must be at the centre guiding its direction, contributing to its structure, and ensuring that the truth is not diluted, and then and only then we can make real changes to the broken system in Oldham and ensure that these failing are never repeated and the future of children’s safety is a brighter one.”
Lucia Rea, an advocate for grooming gang survivors in Oldham, told GB News that the suggestion of a truth project was “insulting” to survivors.
“It risks diminishing, yet again, the seriousness of what they have endured, after years of fighting for justice and recognition of the life altering crimes committed against them."
“The promised statutory inquiry was meant to assign responsibility, gather facts under oath and deliver enforceable accountability.
"Only an independent inquiry with statutory powers, carried out properly, can begin to restore even some of the trust, showing survivors and the wider public, that the authorities are true to their word and are prepared to hold those responsible for wrongdoing and systemic failings to account.”
She added: “A ‘truth project’ is not enough. It is not what was promised. It won’t deliver what a statutory inquiry would.”
The revelation of a truth project being proposed has also generated political reaction, with Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp calling the proposal “disgraceful”.
“The cover ups have gone on too long. These crimes were deliberately disguised because the perpetrators were of mainly Pakistani heritage.
"We forced the government into agreeing a proper statutory national inquiry - and now they are trying to wriggle out of that.
“This is an insult to the thousands of young victims, mainly vulnerable white girls, who were abused and raped over so many years.
“The truth must come out and those who covered this up prosecuted for misconduct in public office.”
GB News understands that Oldham Council has continued to work with the Home Office to understand how a national and local inquiry could work to ensure the voices of survivors in Oldham are at the heart of this process, and that they are listened to and believed.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The abuse of children by grooming gangs is one of the most horrific crimes imaginable, and it is vital that we get to the truth - no matter where it leads us.
"That’s why we have announced a new statutory inquiry to direct and oversee local investigations, with the power to compel evidence and witnesses and bringing national resources and support.
“We are getting on with this work, while taking the time needed to get it right. Work is underway to appoint a Chair who will play a central role in shaping the inquiry, identifying the first local areas to be investigated and setting out how it will work alongside existing locally-led initiatives.”