- Rother Valley MP and Child Sexual Exploitation campaigner Alexander Stafford has called on Justice Secretary Dominic Raab MP to strip Nazir Ahmed of his peerage
- The former Labour Councillor has been found guilty of the attempted rape and sexual abuse of two children
Alexander Stafford, Member of Parliament for Rother Valley and fierce champion of the victims of child sexual exploitation (CSE), has today reacted to the news that former Rotherham peer and ex-Labour Councillor Nazir Ahmed has been found guilty of the attempted rape and sexual abuse of two children.
Lord Ahmed was charged with two counts of attempting to rape a girl under 16, the indecent assault of a boy under 14 and the rape of a boy under 16.
The disgraced former peer was charged along with his two older brothers, Mohammed Farouq, 71, and Mohammed Tariq, 65, but both were deemed unfit to stand trial.
His two older brothers, Farouq and Tariq faced charges of indecent assault in relation to the same boy that Lord Ahmed abused, with the jury also finding they did the acts alleged.
Since his election, Alexander has been a strong voice for the survivors of CSE, calling for tougher sentences for perpetrators, better support for victims and a specific commissioner for Child Criminal and Sexual Exploitation.
Commenting on the news today, Alexander said:
“The focus today needs to be on the victims of this sick abuser and their decades-long fight for justice. I thank them sincerely and wholeheartedly for their bravery and persistence and I welcome this verdict.
But there is no getting away from the fact that this paedophile is in possession of a peerage and this is absolutely and categorically unacceptable. He should be stripped of this immediately.
I will be speaking to my colleagues in the Department of Justice to ensure that this individual is not allowed to continue to hold a peerage, which would be an insult to his victims. In the meantime, I would encourage everyone who agrees with me to sign my petition calling for the immediate removal of Ahmed’s peerage.
