Simon Danczuk welcomes appointment of New Zealand High Court judge to head abuse inquiry

Rochdale MP, Simon Danczuk, has welcomed the appointment of New Zealand High Court judge Lowell Goddard as the head of a new inquiry into historical child sex abuse in England and Wales.

Mr Danczuk, who has been at the forefront of the campaign to identify the abusers and those who covered up for them, said: "I welcome the appointment of Justice Lowell Goddard to Chair the Child Abuse Inquiry. This has been a long and difficult process for survivors of abuse, and I know they will share my relief that we can finally get underway and that the Inquiry will begin before the General Election.

"I had a productive meeting with the Home Secretary this morning, and I have confidence in the process she has gone through in order to find a new Chair. It is obvious that the Home Secretary has cast the net far and wide in order to find an appropriate person and I applaud her for doing so.

"I particularly welcome the fact that the Inquiry will have the statutory powers that are needed and that I and others have been calling for. I also believe it is the right decision to reconstitute the panel and to broaden the terms of reference so that there is no cut-off date for evidence.

"It is clear that mistakes have been made with this Inquiry in the past, but I think today shows that we are moving in the right direction and I hope we can all now focus on the future. I welcome the progress that has been made today and hope we can get this essential Inquiry up and running as soon as possible."

Since the original child abuse inquiry was set up last July, two chairwomen have resigned amid concerns over their links with the establishment.

Home Secretary Theresa May said Justice Goddard was "as removed as possible from the organisations and institutions that might become the focus of the inquiry".

Peter Saunders, chief executive of the National Association for People Abused in Childhood, said Justice Goddard would "enhance the whole credibility of the inquiry".

Justice Goddard, who was appointed to the New Zealand High Court in 1995, said she was "committed to leading a robust and independent inquiry".

The Auckland-born judge has previously led an inquiry into police handling of child abuse cases in New Zealand.