Lord Janner inquiry: Criminal probe could delay investigation

Lord Janner, who was a Leicester MP, died in 2015

An investigation into institutional failings around sex abuse claims against the late Lord Janner could be delayed again, an inquiry has heard.

The Independent Inquiry Into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) is due to hear allegations against the former MP.

However, possible criminal proceedings against a former staff member of Leicestershire Police, connected to the case, could delay the hearing.

The Crown Prosecution Service is due to review the file.

At a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, the inquiry was told the Independent Office for Police Conduct had passed a file concerning one individual to the CPS earlier in September.

'Criminal' file

Counsel to the inquiry, Brian Altman QC, said: "The IOPC has recently concluded its investigation, known as Operation Nori, into allegations of police misconduct connected to historic investigations by Leicestershire Police into allegations of child sexual abuse made against the late Lord Janner of Braunstone QC.

• Latest news and stories from the East Midlands

"As a result of that investigation, the IOPC has referred a file to the CPS for consideration of criminal charges."

The identity of the individual concerned in the file was not given.

The IICSA is conducting an "investigation phase" into the institutional response to child sex claims against Lord Janner, with public hearings scheduled for February 2020.

Mr Altman said those dates should be vacated and provisionally listed for October 2020 because the CPS was still to make a decision on whether to launch a new prosecution.

Inquiry chair Professor Alexis Jay said she would rule at a later date on whether the public hearings should be delayed.

Lord Janner is alleged to have abused victims between the 1950s and 1980s

Lord Janner, a barrister and MP in Leicester, was the subject of child sex abuse allegations dating back to 1955 during three police investigations in the 1990s and 2000s.

Following a fourth police inquiry, he was charged in 2015 with sexually abusing nine alleged victims.

The peer, who suffered from dementia and was ruled unfit to plea, died later that year in December aged 87 before a trial of the facts could take place.

Nick Stanage, representing 14 alleged victims, said his clients had "waited decades" and "waited patiently".

He said they had been "ignored" by public bodies such as the police, and now wished for a public inquiry to examine how their allegations were handled.

Six of Lord Janner's accusers began the process of suing his estate for damages, but this civil case was discontinued in May 2017 after they were assured their claims would form part of a wide-reaching inquiry, and that the actions of the various agencies involved would be scrutinised in detail.

The family of the former Labour peer have always maintained his innocence.

Lord Janner's son, Daniel Janner QC, said claims about his father were "complete rubbish", and he is contemplating a judicial review to get the inquiry shut down.