House of Commons Home Affairs Committee Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse: Government Response to the Committee's Twelfth Report of Session 2014–15 Ninth Special Report of Session 2014– 15 Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed 17 March 2015 HC 1131 Published on 23 March 2015 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £5.00 Home Affairs Committee The Home Affairs Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Home Office and its associated public bodies. Current membership Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP (Labour, Leicester East) (Chair) Ian Austin MP (Labour, Dudley North) Nicola Blackwood MP (Conservative, Oxford West and Abingdon) James Clappison MP (Conservative, Hertsmere) Michael Ellis MP (Conservative, Northampton North) Paul Flynn MP (Labour, Newport West) Lorraine Fullbrook MP (Conservative, South Ribble) Dr Julian Huppert MP (Liberal Democrat, Cambridge) Tim Loughton MP (Conservative, East Worthing and Shoreham) Yasmin Qureshi MP (Labour, Bolton South East) Mr David Winnick MP (Labour, Walsall North) The following were also members of the Committee during the Parliament. Rt Hon Alun Michael (Labour & Co-operative, Cardiff South and Penarth) Karl Turner MP (Labour, Kingston upon Hull East) Steve McCabe MP (Labour, Birmingham Selly Oak) Bridget Phillipson MP (Labour, Houghton and Sunderland South) Chris Ruane MP (Labour, Vale of Clwyd) Mark Reckless MP (UKIP, Rochester and Strood) Powers The Committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No 152. These are available on the Internet via www.parliament.uk Publication The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the Internet at www.parliament.uk/homeaffairscom Committee staff The current staff of the Committee are Tom Healey (Clerk), John-Paul Flaherty (Second Clerk), Dr Ruth Martin (Committee Specialist), Duma Langton (Committee Specialist), Andy Boyd (Senior Committee Assistant), Iwona Hankin (Committee Assistant) and Alex Paterson (Select Committee Media Officer). Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to the Clerk of the Home Affairs Committee, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for general enquiries is 020 7219 2049; the Committee’s email address is [email protected] Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse: Government Response 1 Ninth Special Report On 13 February 2015 the Home Affairs Committee published its Twelfth Report of Session 2014–15, Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (HC 710). The Government’s response to the Report was received on 12 March 2015, and is published as an Appendix to this Special Report. Appendix: Government response Letter from the Rt Hon Theresa May MP, Home Secretary, 12 March 2015 I am writing to you further to the Committee's report 'Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse' which was published on 13 February. I would like to thank the Committee for their report, and for their endorsement of Justice Goddard as Chairman of the Independent Panel Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. The hearing, and your subsequent report, is an important element of bringing further transparency to the appointment process. Please see the enclosed Government response to this report. You will also note that I have today laid a Written Ministerial Statement formally appointing Justice Goddard as Chairman, appointing the members of the new Panel and setting out the Terms of Reference for the Inquiry. The Rt Hon Theresa May MP Introduction The Government is determined that no stone will be left unturned in this essential inquiry into the failings of state and non-state institutions. We are determined that appalling cases of child sexual abuse should be exposed so that perpetrators face justice and the vulnerable are protected. This is a once in a generation opportunity to get to the truth. The Inquiry will consider whether public bodies and other, non-state, institutions have taken seriously their duty of care to protect children from sexual abuse, exposing what has gone wrong in the past and making recommendations to prevent it from happening in the future. The Home Secretary is absolutely committed to ensuring the Independent Panel Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse has the confidence of survivors. That is why she met them and their representatives to hear their views and to ensure the right person was appointed to lead the Inquiry Panel. More than 150 people were nominated for the role of Chairman, and full consideration was given to their background, relevant experience and expertise. A copy of the criteria 2 Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse: Government Response used to assess the nominations has been placed in the House library and published on gov.uk. Based on clear feedback from survivors, and assessment of the nominations against the agreed criteria, the Home Secretary chose to appoint Justice Goddard as the new Chairman. Justice Goddard is a judge of the High Court of New Zealand and is a highly respected member of the judiciary who has been at the forefront of criminal law and procedure. As chairman of the Independent Police Complaints Association of New Zealand she conducted an inquiry into the policing of child abuse in New Zealand and she is also a member of the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture. The Home Secretary also announced on 4 February that the Inquiry will be placed on a statutory footing under the 2005 Inquiries Act, with the power to compel witnesses to give evidence. The current panel have been disbanded and replaced by a new panel selected against a set of criteria which has been placed in the House Library and published on gov.uk. The Committee’s specific conclusions and recommendations are addressed in turn below. Government response Conclusion/Recommendation 1 There were well-publicised problems with the appointment of the Panel, which resulted in the early resignation of two previous Chairs. It is important that a Chair is now appointed who will command the confidence of survivors. (Paragraph 7). Government response It is clear the Inquiry needs a Chairman who has the experience and authority to run such an Inquiry, and commands the confidence of the survivors. That is why the Home Secretary met survivors and their representatives to hear their views and to ensure the right person was appointed to lead the Inquiry. Survivors expressed a strong preference for a judge to lead the Inquiry, and Justice Goddard is an outstanding candidate. Justice Goddard has strong credentials to run this Inquiry, and her qualities and experience will stand her in good stead to continue to command the trust of survivors. She has relevant experience having run an inquiry into the police handling of child abuse cases in New Zealand and is a High Court judge in New Zealand. Conclusion/Recommendation 2 We thank all the members of the original Panel for their work. The work that has already been done, in particular the material gathered at listening meetings, must be made available to the new Panel. The original Panel was unable to operate effectively without leadership and the appointment of a Chair for the new Panel should not be delayed further. The terms of reference for the inquiry need to be established and the new Panel appointed as quickly as possible so that the inquiry Appointment of the Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse: Government Response 3 team can get to work. Parliament must be kept actively informed about the future work of the inquiry. (Paragraph 13). Government response The Home Office has been clear that the disbanding of the current Panel is not a criticism of the current Panel members who were selected on the basis of their expertise and commitment to getting to the truth about child sexual abuse in this country. The fact that the Panel is being dissolved has nothing to do with their ability or integrity, and the Home Office is grateful for the work they have done so far. The original Panel members have produced a report on their work so far, which will be passed to Justice Goddard and the new Panel. The Home Office is clear that the new Panel should be up and running as soon as possible. The Home Secretary has consulted with Justice Goddard on the Terms of Reference for the Inquiry and the membership of the new Panel, which has been agreed against the set of published criteria. The Panel will produce interim reports on the work of the Inquiry, which will of course be shared with Parliament. Conclusion/Recommendation 3 We welcome the role of this Committee in this pre-appointment hearing, which we believe is a valuable contribution to the independence and transparency of the inquiry process. The Committee’s involvement should have been invited from the start. (Paragraph 17). Government response The Home Office would like to thank the Committee for completing the pre-appointment process so swiftly. The hearing, and the Committee’s subsequent report, is an important element of bringing further transparency to the appointment process. Conclusion/Recommendation 4 The controversy of the last few months has demonstrated the need for the inquiry to develop a robust methodology for dealing with the conflicting views of different contributors to the inquiry and for demonstrating transparency of the inquiry process whilst maintaining individuals’ confidentiality. The panel will need to ensure that different views are heard and taken account of, and that all survivors of abuse have confidence in that process.