London – Good Morning Britain (GMB) has issued an apology to prominent grooming gang survivor and campaigner Sammy Woodhouse following her live interview on the program. Woodhouse revealed that she was instructed not to mention the race of the perpetrators before going on air, a directive she chose to disregard during her discussion about grooming gangs. Her defiance and the subsequent apology highlight ongoing sensitivities and systemic issues surrounding the reporting of such crimes.
Woodhouse took to social media to share her experience, stating, "This morning, I appeared on Good Morning Britain in a live interview about the grooming gangs. Before I went on air, I was told not to mention the race of the perpetrators. I, of course, didn’t listen. I have now received an apology from the editor." The tweet, which included a link to her interview, quickly garnered significant attention.
The incident on GMB comes as authorities grapple with the findings of Baroness Casey's report on child sexual exploitation. The report found that police often avoided investigating grooming gangs due to fears of being labeled racist, contributing to a culture of denial and cover-up. It also revealed that the ethnicity of perpetrators is not recorded in two-thirds of child sexual exploitation cases, hindering accurate assessments.
Casey's review, which highlighted a disproportionate number of men from Asian ethnic backgrounds among suspects in group-based child sexual exploitation, prompted the Home Secretary to accept recommendations for compulsory collection of ethnicity and nationality data. This move aims to address the significant data gaps that have plagued investigations for years.
Sammy Woodhouse, a survivor of the Rotherham grooming gang, has been a vocal advocate for victims and has consistently campaigned for greater transparency. She has expressed skepticism about official promises, noting that many recommendations from previous inquiries, such as the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), have yet to be fully implemented. Her work continues to push for accountability across all institutions involved.
