Sheldon Thomas, a consultant on organised criminal networks and street gangs, tells BBC Radio 5 Live he thinks both Labour and Conservative governments have failed to address the problems of grooming gangs.

"We have never seen action taken," he says.

He adds that each time there is an inquiry in to the scandal "nothing gets done".

Thomas says that governments "give it a load of talk" and spend millions but "nothing has changed".

On Starmer's announcement of a new national inquiry, he says: "We have heard this all before."

As we wait for BBC Radio 5 Live's Gordon Smart to question experts ahead of a report into sex gangs, let's take a look at how UK newspapers reported the story this morning.

Several paper headlines focus on the prime minister's change in direction on a nationwide inquiry.

The Daily Mail says Starmer is "scrambling to appear decisive" after "resisting action" on grooming gangs for months.

The Times notes the PM had "repeatedly resisted calls for a national inquiry".

Meanwhile, the Daily Express headlines on Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch's call for Starmer to apologise after waiting "six wasted months" before launching an inquiry.

• Take a look at more of what's been covered in the newspapers this morning

This morning, BBC Radio 5 Live's Gordon Smart, who is stepping in for Nicky Campbell, will be putting this question to his guests: "Was Labour wrong on grooming gangs?"

He'll also be speaking to child protection and criminal law experts about the announcement of a new national inquiry.

• We'll be bringing you the key lines here, and you can watch along by clicking the watch live button at the top of the page when the programme gets under way at 10:00.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has defended the government's decision to launch a national inquiry into grooming gangs after months of pressure.

Reeves, speaking on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, insisted that ministers "never dismissed the concerns of victims" of grooming gangs.

She defended Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has faced criticism for resisting calls for such an inquiry, by saying he was doing "everything that was necessary".

The Conservatives claim they forced Starmer into a U-turn on an inquiry.

"Our prime minister has always been really focused on the victims, and not grandstanding but actually doing the practical things to ensure something like this never happens again," she said.

In an interview with the BBC a victim of child grooming describes how she would come home "drunk, stoned, with bruises, ripped clothes and half-naked" during the time she was abused.

She says she wants other young people to know "it is not okay to be groomed".

"Speak out if you feel something is not right. Don't be scared."

The former chief prosecutor for the north-west of England says he has "pragmatic doubts" about a new national inquiry into grooming gangs.

Nazir Afzal tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "Unfortunately, my experience with national inquiries is that they take forever and don't deliver accountability."

He adds that he thinks a time limit should be placed on the national inquiry.

Afzal, who instigated prosecutions in the Rochdale child sex abuse ring case, suggests the new nationwide policing operation targeting grooming gangs could be more significant.

"Only criminal investigations can bring real accountability," he says. "That's what needs to happen. Not just for those who offended, but also those who stood by and didn't do what they were meant to do."

The National Crime Agency (NCA) will carry out a nationwide operation to target and jail predators who have sexually exploited children as part of a grooming gang, according to the Home Office.

What do we know about their operation?

• The Home Office says the NCA will work with police forces to give "long-awaited justice" to victims whose cases had not progressed through the criminal justice system
• It will also aim to prevent more children from being hurt by such crimes and imprison more perpetrators of child sexual abuse
• The NCA operation will aim to "put an end to the culture of denial in local services and authorities about the prevalence of this crime"
• It will also work to help improve how local police forces investigate such crimes

The Home Office said police had reopened more than 800 historic cases of group-based child sexual abuse since the home secretary had asked them in January to look again at cases that were "closed too early and victims denied justice".

The Labour MP for Rotherham Sarah Champion tells the BBC's Today programme there is a real sense that "justice hasn’t been handed out fairly” and there are "still victims and survivors that haven’t seen justice".

She says she was initially reluctant about another "grooming gangs" inquiry but supported it after realising there was "overwhelming public concern".

Champion adds that not the front-line staff, but "further up the management chain there were people who were actively blocking reports".

She says there are people who should be "held to a professional standard for their negligence in protecting these children”.

Those who would have faced the most criticism have left or retired, she says.

The biggest failing was that "no-one has joined the dots up" when it came to grooming gangs of a Pakistani heritage.

"Are there any links between those different groups and gangs? Personally, I think it's highly likely that there will be," she adds.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp says it is "critical" to get to the truth about police forces and local authorities' involvement in grooming gangs.

"They deliberately covered up these appalling crimes, the rape of young girls, predominantly those from vulnerable backgrounds," he tells BBC Breakfast.

He adds that authorities covered up these crimes because they were "more interested in race relations, than they were in protecting young girls".

Philip says Prime Minister Keir Starmer only announced the national inquiry into grooming gangs because the government had been "forced" to due to the Casey report being published.

Starmer told reporters at the weekend: "I've never said we should not look again at any issue." He added that Baroness Casey had originally thought a new inquiry was not necessary, but she had changed her mind having looked into it in recent months.

Image source, Getty Images

At the start of this year, the issue of grooming gangs was amplified by tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has millions of social media followers, who had criticised Keir Starmer for not calling a national inquiry.

A row between the two centred on high-profile cases where groups of men, mainly of Pakistani descent, were convicted of sexually abusing and raping predominantly young white girls in towns such as Rotherham and Rochdale.

Musk made a number of attacks on X including accusing Starmer of being "complicit in the rape of Britain" during his time as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) between 2008 and 2013.

Speaking in January, Starmer said his record was there for all to see. While he was DPP he introduced a special prosecutor for child abuse and sexual exploitation.

Starmer also attacked those who were "spreading lies and misinformation".

The row was reignited after it was reported that the government had rejected Oldham Council's request for a government-led inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation in the town, in favour of a locally-led investigation.

Image source, PA Media

In October 2022, child protection expert Prof Alexis Jay finished a seven-year inquiry into the countless ways children had been sexually abused in England and Wales.

The independent inquiry carried out 15 investigations, including into grooming gangs and abuse in schools and church settings.

She warned there was an "epidemic that left thousands of victims in its poisonous wake". She also made 20 recommendations to reduce child suffering.

These included setting up a national child protection authority, implementing tighter controls on who can work with vulnerable children and making not reporting abuse a criminal offence.

Professor Jay was also behind a 2014 report which found 1,400 underage girls, some as young as 11, had been abused between 1997 and 2013 in Rotherham.

Image source, Reuters

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Saturday there would be a full national statutory inquiry into grooming gangs in England and Wales.

The move was announced ahead of the publication of Baroness Louise Casey's report into the data and evidence on the nature and scale of group-based child sexual abuse.

"She's come to the view there should be a national inquiry on the basis of what she's seen," Starmer told reporters over the weekend.

"I've read every single word of her report, and I'm going to accept her recommendation," he added.

Earlier this year, the government dismissed calls for a national inquiry on the basis the issue had already been examined during a lengthy inquiry led by Professor Alexis Jay in 2022.

Baroness Louise Casey's findings on grooming gangs are set to be published, after the prime minister announced a new national inquiry.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to give a statement to the Commons over the report this afternoon.

Meanwhile, the National Crime Agency said it would carry out a nationwide operation to target and jail predators who have sexually exploited children as part of a grooming gang, the Home Office says.

Keir Starmer announced on Saturday there would be a full national statutory inquiry into grooming gangs covering England and Wales.

Stay with us for live updates ahead of the report being published.