Section:GDN 1N PaGe:12 Edition Date:190724 Edition:01 Zone: Sent at 23/7/2019 19:09 cYanmaGentaYellowb
- The Guardian Wednesday 24 July 2019
(^12) National
Beech’s bogus VIP abuser claims must not
silence real survivors, warn child charities
Simon Murphy
Jim Waterson
The conviction of man who fabricated
allegations about a VIP paedophile ring
in Westminster must not stop genuine
child abuse survivors coming forward
to seek justice, leading charities have
warned.
Carl Beech, 51, a former nurse who
is himself a convicted paedophile , was
found guilty on Monday of perverting
the course of justice and fraud over
his claims of abuse against a series of
high-profi le fi gures. But child abuse
survivors’ charities have said his false
allegations – which tarnished the rep-
utations of innocent men – must not
detract from legitimate cases.
Scotland Yard has come under fi re
over its handling of the multi million -
pound inquiry into Beech’s claims
Jade Hammond
More than 3,000 people will play a
part in marking the Peterloo massacre,
on the 200th anniversary of the
peaceful rally for greater political
representation and reform that was
attacked by sword-wielding calvary.
The immersive event, called From
which shut without a single arrest
being made.
Beech, from Gloucester, claimed the
gang of abusers included the former
prime minister Edward Heath, the for-
mer home secretary Leon Brittan, the
former Tory MP Harvey Proctor and
the former head of the armed forces
Lord Bramall. He fl ed to Sweden when
his claims unravelled.
Peter Saunders , the founder of
the National Association for People
Abused in Childhood (Napac) , said:
“Carl Beech’s case must not detract
from the many genuine child abuse
survivors in society and, crucially, nor
should it stop them coming forward
to seek justice. He’s a one -off. He has
proven to be a fantasist and a liar. This
mustn’t detract from the wider issue
of going after child abusers and, criti-
cally, supporting survivors when they
do come forward.”
The Crowd, will include witness
accounts of people present at the
rally in St Peter’s Field, Manchester,
in August 1819, as well as the words of
contemporary protest ers and poets.
The three performances, being
held at Manchester Central Conven-
tion Centre on 16 August , are described
as a dialogue between 1819 and 2019,
and will involve 1,000 members of the
public joining about 150 musicians
Beech, who was a governor of
two schools and volunteered for the
NSPCC , pleaded guilty in a separate
trial in January to four counts of mak-
ing indecent photographs of children,
one count of possessing indecent
images of children and one count of
voyeurism. He committed the crimes
while going to the police with his false
allegations of abuse.
Fa y Maxted , the chief executive of
and performers. Helping to lead
the participants will be 100 people
volunteering as “laurels” – recalling
th e marchers who went to St Peter’s
Field from Middleton carrying lau-
rel branches as a symbol of peace
along with banners advocating lib-
erty, fraternity and universal suff rage.
Among the “laurels” will be descend-
ants of the 60,000 present in 1819.
The music for the event has been
composed by a member of the indie
pop band Dutch Uncles.
Evie Manning , the creative director,
said: “The piece explores the power of
the crowd, the sense of the unexpected
and the galvanising solidarity that
The Survivors’ Trust, also voiced fears
that Beech’s case might prevent gen-
uine survivors coming forward. “It’s
absolutely crucial that one case like
this, which has been so high profi le
and captured everyone’s attention,
does not actually get in the way of the
many thousands, upon thousands of
survivors who have had horrendous
experiences.
“Ultimately, if this case does aff ect
public confi dence in these cases and
it does detract from survivors coming
forward then there is a huge safeguard-
ing issue.”
A spokeswoman for the Independ-
ent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
(IICSA) – which is investigating claims
against local authorities, religious
organisations, the armed forces and
public and private institutions – urged
survivors to come forward.
She said: “[The inquiry] actively
manifests when people are together
as one. We’ll be remembering those
that protested and lost their lives at
Peterloo and those whose lives today
are aff ected by oppression .”
Karen Shannon , CEO of the charity
Manchester Histories, said: “The Peter-
loo massacre is a globally signifi cant
milestone in the history of democracy
that also set Manchester’s path as a
radical city of progress, change and
where equality is championed.”
encourages victims and survivors
of child sexual abuse to share their
experiences with our Truth Project;
so far, it has heard from more than
3,500 people across England and
Wales. Some survivors have had their
experiences published in order to help
others understand the impact that
abuse can have. We also heard from
victims and survivors in our public
hearings and will continue to do so
until they conclude in 2020.”
Following Beech’s conviction,
Sunday People news reports of his
claims from 2014 began to be taken
off its website. Numerous accounts
of his allegations had appeared in the
tabloid, provided by the discredited
Exaro news agency, under sensational
headlines such as “I saw MP throttle
young boy to death”.
Reach Plc, the parent company of
the Mirror and the Sunday People,
said it had already taken down fi ve
stories based on Beech’s claims and
would continue to remove others.
Beech faces a lengthy jail term when
he is sentenced on Friday at Newcas-
tle crown court.
Journal Ceri Thomas Page 4
Schools choose
‘posh’ uniforms
to exclude poor
pupils, says MP
Crowds to star in ‘immersive’ show
for 200th anniversary of Peterloo
Helen Pidd
North of England editor
Some schools are deliberately pricing
school uniforms beyond the means of
poorer families so “only posh kids go
there”, MPs have been told.
Emma Hardy , the Labour MP for
Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle ,
has written to the education secretary,
Dami an Hinds , asking him to tell
schools to stop forcing parents to buy
branded school uniforms.
She said that academies in
particular were “emulating grammar
schools and private schools” in
prescribing prohibitively expensive
uniforms – including branded blazers
and even socks.
She had also been told some acad-
emies deliberately chose expensive
suppliers in order to “put off ” parents
of lesser means, and that some schools
received a cut from suppliers given the
exclusive contract for their uniforms.
Hardy sits on a committee of MPs
which earlier this month heard from
parents about school holiday poverty.
One mother, Karen Rotheram,
told the committee: “There are some
schools in our area where the uniforms
are very overpriced. You are looking at
£80 to £100 just for a blazer and a pair
of trousers or something ”. Another
Labour MP, Lucy Powell , said the
committee had been told “schools
do that deliberately so that only posh
kids go there”.
A survey from the Children’s Society
last year found families were shelling
out more on school uniforms with an
average of £340 a year for each child at
secondary school – an increase of 7%
or £24 since 2015. Parents of primary
school children spent on average £255,
an increase of 2% since 2015.
▲ A print depicting the violent attack
by troops on the 1819 democracy rally,
later known as the Peterloo massacre
IMAGE: MANCHESTER LIBRARIES, CITY COUNCIL
‘He has proven to be
a fantasist and a liar.
This mustn’t detract
from the wider issue’
Peter Saunders
Founder of Napac
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