A grooming gang victim has accused the speaker of the Welsh parliament of ‘downplaying’ her horrific abuse and Labour politicians of ‘shying away’ from the rape gang scandal rocking Britain.
Emily Vaughn- not her real name- was trafficked from her home in Wales to England where she was raped over 1,000 times, amongst other horrific abuse.
Last week, Welsh Tory leader Darren Millar was describing Emily’s ordeal in the Senedd (Welsh parliament) when the speaker blocked him because he was being ‘overly descriptive’, risked ‘inciting discrimination’ and ‘was not stating facts.’
Millar protested, but Jones slapped him down saying she was ‘very disappointed’ and threatened to ‘ask him to sit down’.
After the event, Jones was immediately embroiled in a censorship row as Tory Senedd members criticised her for shutting down the debate.
Tory leader censored by speaker during question on rape gang abuse
Jones- who was elected for Plaid Cymru and adopts political neutrality for her role- said she was ‘seeking to protect victims’, adding she wasn’t aware Emily Vaughn had spoken publicly about her abuse.
Now the victim at the heart of the row has shared her views on the incident.
Emily Vaughn said: “I didn’t know Darren Millar was going to talk about my story in the Senedd on Tuesday – someone sent me the clip last night.
“I was so upset when the Llywydd (speaker) stopped Darren from speaking out about what happened to me. We shouldn’t shy away from the issue of grooming gangs.
“If politicians don’t want to talk about it – then they will add to the failures.”
Before the ‘censorship’ incident, Darren Millar had repeatedly asked Labour leader Eluned Morgan if she would back an inquiry into rape gangs in Wales.
The First Minister refused to say whether she would back one, telling Millar three times she was ‘disappointed’ in his question while calling for the rhetoric on this issue to be toned down.
Morgan also said the Welsh government fully backed the previous Jay report into rape gangs and was implementing a ten year strategy to prevent and respond to child sexual abuse.
Vaughn continued: “If anything happens to children in Wales, they [politicians] become partly to blame. It should be an uncomfortable issue to discuss.
“If adults find it difficult to hear – imagine how the children who experience sexual abuse and trafficking feel.
“The Llywydd shouldn’t be telling people not to talk about it. It made me so sad to see that when Darren said he was ‘speaking facts’ – she said, ‘no you’re not’. It felt like she was attacking me and all the other victims.
“In terms of the issue becoming politicised, I think people are always going to have a strong opinions on child sexual exploitation. It doesn’t matter if that opinion is aired in a parliament or in someone’s house or a school.”
Wales Labour leader (Eluned Morgan, left) snubbed Millar’s (right) call for grooming gangs inquiry three times in fiery clash. Speaker Elin Jones (middle) repeatedly blocked Millar’s question to Morgan.
Senedd TV
Since the incident, Vaughn has called for a national inquiry into grooming gangs in Wales, but the Welsh government has refused on the basis there isn’t enough evidence of widespread grooming gangs in Cymru to warrant a full inquiry.
Vaughn disagreed, stating: “I’ve done work with people in Wales who have been victims of grooming gangs. I think there are major issues with the way data is collected.
“There are so many county lines coming in and out of Wales that child sexual abuse data has become hidden. But there are grooming gangs in Wales – of course there are, why would there not be?
“Look at the map of the UK – do politicians think that grooming gangs stop when it comes to Wales? People who exploit children don’t care about borders.
“They don’t move from places like Liverpool, Newcastle, Oxford or Telford, then all of a sudden say ‘oh no we can’t go into Wales’.
“The argument that it isn’t happening in Wales is probably one of the stupidest things I’ve ever heard.”
Responding, a Welsh government spokesperson said: “We will continue to do everything we can as a government to ensure young people in Wales are safe from the horrific crimes of exploitation and sexual abuse.
“Whilst we have received assurances from all Welsh police forces that there are no current widespread issues with grooming gangs here, we welcome the decision by the Home Secretary to ask all police forces, including in Wales, to review historic gang exploitation cases where no further action was taken.
“We also welcome the UK Government’s announcement of a national review across the UK led by Baroness Louise Casey and will be engaging fully with this review.”
Darren Millar, leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said: “I am profoundly moved by the courage shown by Emily Vaughan in coming forward to share the horrors she endured at the hands of grooming gangs.
“I have already extended an invitation to Emily to meet with me, and I sincerely hope she will have the opportunity to share her difficult experiences with the Senedd. Her story should leave no one in authority in any doubt about the existence of grooming gangs in Wales.
“It is vital that we put politics aside and recognise our moral duty to uncover the full scale of these heinous offences in Wales. We must leave no stone unturned in addressing these issues once and for all. That is why I am fully supporting Emily’s call for an inquiry.
“We are united in backing her cause. This is not about politics – it’s about justice, compassion, and ensuring that no other victim suffers in silence.”
Vaughn’s ordeal began when she was groomed into being a county lines drug trafficker as an eleven-year-old.
She was later forced to travel from south Wales to Telford and made to join a huge child sex trafficking gang.
Emily told GB News National Reporter Charlie Peters she was raped over 1,000 times by hundreds of men who paid for either full intercourse or oral sex.
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She says her abusers were mostly Asian – although some of the men were white.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced last week a nationwide review of grooming gang evidence and five government-backed local inquiries.
Elon Musk, who thrust the rape gangs scandal onto the world stage via his platform X, responded to Cooper’s announcement, stating: “I hope this is a proper investigation.
“This is a step in the right direction, but the results will speak for themselves.”
Responding to censorship accusations, Welsh speaker Elin Jones said: “In calling on Members to avoid using what could be triggering and distressing language, I was seeking to protect victims of abuse.
“I understand now that Emily Vaughn has spoken publicly about her experience. I was not sufficiently aware of that at the time.
“I applaud Emily Vaughn’s courage in speaking out, and I support her and other women and girls in their pursuit of justice.”