Protestors attempt to ‘storm’ Andy Burnham HQ to demand chat with mayor

Protestors attempted to ‘storm’ Andy Burnham’s office on Monday (17 February) to demand an audience with the mayor over child sexual exploitation cases in Greater Manchester.

A group of ‘Million Women’ March campaigners gathered on the steps of Mr Burnham’s headquarters on Oxford Street, in Manchester, with some entering the building to call for the mayor’s backing of a statutory inquiry.

Attendees, which included survivors of child sexual exploitation (CSE) from Rochdale and Oldham, claim they were told ‘no representative’ of Andy Burnham was available to speak to them.

The protest comes just days after Oldham Council voted to request a ‘statutory inquiry’ into its handling of grooming gangs. The council is already preparing what has been called a ‘Telford-style’ local review after the Home Office turned down a previous request for a government-led inquiry.

But statutory powers would mean the review could compel authorities to provide evidence and give witness statements, which the local review would not have the power to do.

 

 

While survivors and campaigners told the Local Democracy Reporting Service they were ‘proud’ of the decision, many shared doubts that the government will take the call for a statutory inquiry seriously. Survivors who attended the protest said they were ‘sick of politicians speaking to politicians’ and wanted Andy Burnham and the police commissioner to hear directly from those affected.

Amelia, a survivor who has changed her name to protect her right to anonymity, said: “Nobody could come down and speak to us. It felt like an insult.

“It would’ve been nice for the Manchester mayor, the man who represents our city and the police commissioner to see how many ladies have joined together on this subject. You’ve got mums, grandmas, survivors crying at these protests because of the devastation this issue has brought to our lives.”

Footage from today’s protest shows a group chanting ‘justice for the children’ at the entrance to Burnham’s office. Some waved white roses and held placards that read ‘broken systems, broken trust – fix it now’ and ‘hold institutions to account’.

Another attendee described how the crowd ‘stormed’ the building’s entrance way and security ‘then locked the doors’. Protestors pressed their placards against the glass and left roses on the steps.

Greater Manchester Combined Authority has been approached for comment.

Charlotte Hall, Local Democracy Reporter