Robert Jenrick has accused Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer of an "outrageous smear" after linking those calling for a public inquiry into grooming gangs with "far-right" activists.
The Labour leader attacked politicians and activists for "spreading lies and misinformation" over grooming gangs in a press conference on Monday.
In his remarks, Starmer accused those calling for an inquiry into Britain's grooming gangs of "jumping on the far-right bandwagon".
Speaking to GB News, the former Tory leadership candidate condemned the Prime Minister's stance, suggesting it reflected "the same attitude that got us into this mess in the first place".
Jenrick stated: "I thought it was the most outrageous smear. Look, millions of people across our country want to see justice for the victims."
He emphasised the scale of the issue, stating: "What we're talking about here is thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of vulnerable young girls who were tortured and raped in the most horrific evil manner in towns and cities the length and breadth of our country."
The Shadow Justice Secretary accused Starmer of promoting a mindset of "turning a blind eye for fear of political correctness," which he claimed had allowed such crimes to fester "decade after decade".
Jenrick highlighted previous Government efforts to address the issue, noting Theresa May had commissioned reviews with Professor Alexis Jay that "first shed light on this".
The Shadow Justice Secretary also pointed to more recent actions, including Suella Braverman's creation of a grooming gangs task force that led to 550 arrests and reportedly protected 4,500 victims.
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Jenrick explained: "She was the one who drafted the law, which sadly fell away at the general election, but now Labour are going to take it forward so that it is made mandatory that public officials have to report when they have suspicion of child sexual abuse and that we make an aggregated factor in sentencing so the grooming gang perpetrators, these vile, evil individuals, get longer sentences than they do today."
He also argued that foreign national offenders should be deported, stating: "I have long advocated whole life sentences for these grooming gang perpetrators, and I've said that if they're foreign national offenders, get them out of our country.
"Get them out of our country - no ifs, no buts, so they never step foot on this soil."
The Shadow Justice Secretary also demanded accountability for officials who failed to act, noting that "not a single one has been prosecuted so far."
He urged for a comprehensive national inquiry, explaining that previous investigations only covered six towns while the issue affects "probably 50 towns across our country."
Jenrick described it as "probably the biggest racially aggravated scandal of its kind in modern history."
He concluded: "We need to take action, and we need now to have a full national public inquiry, because the previous report only looked at six towns and we know, in part because of the good reporting of GB News, that this is now happening in probably 50 towns across our country, if not more.
"This is a massive scandal, and that's why we need this full national inquiry, and we need it to start as soon as possible."
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The Labour leader attacked politicians and activists for "spreading lies and misinformation" over grooming gangs in a press conference on Monday.
In his remarks, Starmer accused those calling for an inquiry into Britain's grooming gangs of "jumping on the far-right bandwagon".
Speaking to GB News, the former Tory leadership candidate condemned the Prime Minister's stance, suggesting it reflected "the same attitude that got us into this mess in the first place".
Jenrick stated: "I thought it was the most outrageous smear. Look, millions of people across our country want to see justice for the victims."
He emphasised the scale of the issue, stating: "What we're talking about here is thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of vulnerable young girls who were tortured and raped in the most horrific evil manner in towns and cities the length and breadth of our country."
The Shadow Justice Secretary accused Starmer of promoting a mindset of "turning a blind eye for fear of political correctness," which he claimed had allowed such crimes to fester "decade after decade".
Jenrick highlighted previous Government efforts to address the issue, noting Theresa May had commissioned reviews with Professor Alexis Jay that "first shed light on this".
The Shadow Justice Secretary also pointed to more recent actions, including Suella Braverman's creation of a grooming gangs task force that led to 550 arrests and reportedly protected 4,500 victims.
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Jenrick explained: "She was the one who drafted the law, which sadly fell away at the general election, but now Labour are going to take it forward so that it is made mandatory that public officials have to report when they have suspicion of child sexual abuse and that we make an aggregated factor in sentencing so the grooming gang perpetrators, these vile, evil individuals, get longer sentences than they do today."
He also argued that foreign national offenders should be deported, stating: "I have long advocated whole life sentences for these grooming gang perpetrators, and I've said that if they're foreign national offenders, get them out of our country.
"Get them out of our country - no ifs, no buts, so they never step foot on this soil."
The Shadow Justice Secretary also demanded accountability for officials who failed to act, noting that "not a single one has been prosecuted so far."
He urged for a comprehensive national inquiry, explaining that previous investigations only covered six towns while the issue affects "probably 50 towns across our country."
Jenrick described it as "probably the biggest racially aggravated scandal of its kind in modern history."
He concluded: "We need to take action, and we need now to have a full national public inquiry, because the previous report only looked at six towns and we know, in part because of the good reporting of GB News, that this is now happening in probably 50 towns across our country, if not more.
"This is a massive scandal, and that's why we need this full national inquiry, and we need it to start as soon as possible."
Find Out More...