UNITED KINGDOM
The Times
Andrew Norfolk, Chief Investigative Reporter | Sean O’Neill, Chief Reporter
October 15 2016
The Times
MPs were given misleading information by the home secretary, it emerged last night as the government admitted that senior officials were alerted to concerns over the “professionalism and competence” of the judge leading the child abuse inquiry.
Amber Rudd told MPs last month that Dame Lowell Goddard quit her £500,000 post because she was homesick and lonely. Responding last night to revelations in The Times, the Home Office conceded that the judge was forced to stand down after officials close to Theresa May learnt of allegations about the New Zealander’s conduct.
Its statement was the first acknowledgement that the government was aware of concerns about Dame Lowell’s leadership of the £100 million inquiry before she resigned.
The Times reported yesterday that Home Office staff and advisers received warnings over several months about Dame Lowell’s allegedly offensive behaviour at the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) but took no action to end her “catastrophic” tenure.
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