LONDON: UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman has reportedly lost the backing of staunch ally Steve Baker over her position on child sexual abuse and grooming gangs.
Baker, a prominent figure on the right wing of the UK Conservative Party and current Northern Ireland minister, will not support Braverman in any potential leadership bid, according to a Guardian report.
He had previously backed the home secretary when she ran to replace former Prime Minister Boris Johnson last year.
Braverman came in for criticism after she made comments in April about British Pakistani men and grooming gangs, which cost her Baker’s support, the report said.
She claimed crimes were being committed by a “predominance of certain ethnic groups — and I say British Pakistani males — who hold cultural values totally at odds with British values, who see women in a demeaned and illegitimate way and pursue an outdated and frankly heinous approach in terms of the way they behave.”
Those close to Baker told the Guardian: “If she had said this is a problem predominantly carried out by white men in their own homes but that in some areas it was carried out by Pakistani men and covered up for political reasons that would have been fine.
“But she has heaped shame upon innocent men. It is not that she is stupid but that she is unwise.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The Home Secretary has been clear that all despicable child abusers must be brought to justice. And she will not shy away from telling hard truths, particularly when it comes to the grooming of young women and girls in Britain’s towns who have been failed by authorities over decades.
“As the home secretary has said, the vast majority of British Pakistanis are law-abiding, upstanding citizens, but independent reports were unequivocal that in towns like Rochdale, Rotherham and Telford, cultural sensitivities have meant thousands of young girls were abused under the noses of councils and police.
“That’s why we have announced a raft of measures, including a new police task force and mandatory reporting, to ensure this horrific scandal can never happen again, and bring members of grooming gangs to justice for the victims.”
