Starmer could be summoned to give evidence at grooming gangs inquiry

Former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has been granted core participant status in the grooming gangs inquiry he ordered in 2025. This gives him formal rights to take part and means he could be asked or compelled to give evidence, though it does not guarantee he will be called.

The £65 million inquiry, led by former children’s commissioner Baroness Anne Longfield, is due to begin hearings in December and will run for three years. It can compel witnesses and require organisations to provide documents as it examines failures in responses to child sexual exploitation in places including Birmingham, Bradford, London, Oldham and parts of Wales. Its launch followed criticism of Starmer’s initial resistance to a national inquiry, and was delayed by resignations and disputes over its scope.