Boris

A crime is a crime whether is was committed yesterday or thirty years ago. No one who has abused children should be allowed to feel that if they have got away with it for the past 30 years they are immune from prosecution.

Good job Diane Abbott didn't say it.

Terri there’s no ‘alleged’ about it - DS has admitted it to the Child Abuse Enquiry.

Boris Johnson needs to think before he speaks.

What Boris says is of little consequence but the subject in question most certainly is.

A poster said:-

" I don’t agree with the dead being judged for crimes , everyone must be allowed to defend themselves, the dead cannot"
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They can certainly be defamed for political gain by those who elect to use Parliamentary Privilege and believing, as did the police, in the words of a liar.

There are names that have been and will be dragged into the mud but unless there is decent, grounded ' EVIDENCE ' and not hatred of a political party or person used to defame them then if the accused is no longer alive to defend themselves there should be no repeat of the disgraceful, overtly political propaganda that we saw during the police investigation ' OPERATION Midland.' which proved to be a baseless, pack of lies by a fantasist called ' Nick'.

If there is decent, grounded ' EVIDENCE ' of wrong doing then of course whether historic or not the abused should have the right to be heard but it must be done for the right purpose and politicians, the police, the CPS, the media must learn from the disgraceful manner individuals such as Leon Brittan, Lord Brammell, Cliff Richards, Ted Heath, Neil Fox, Dave Lee Travis, Paul Gambaccinni, Harvey Proctor et al were treated.

I am not of the opinion there are historic cases that should have been dealt with at the time but for goodness sake let the individuals named in OPERATION MIDLAND who were cleared and given apologies by the police be free of this continuing need to mudrake because of who they were.

One thing I do agree with is the waste of money OPERATION MIDLAND and others like it have proven to be and the fact it comes out of the Police and CPS budget. I think they need to reflect on the copious amounts of cases that have proven to be spurious allegations and thrown out of court and the cost not only to financial budgets but to the individuals concerned whether they be politicians, celebrities, students or whom ever.

I've never heard the word spaffed before.

This topic is worthy of a debate but Boris has reduced the question to gutter level.

Correction

I ' AM.' of the opinion there are historic cases that should have been dealt with at the time.

What a disgrace he is. Boris should stick antics on the zip wire and nothing else, he needs sacking.

Any crime, but particularly those against children (or other vulnerable groups) should be investigated, however long it has been since they were committed, I think.
I don't consider it a waste of money; it is right to bring people to justice, and to dismiss what they've done is almost as bad as condoning their actions, and an insult to the victims.

What of those in the list in POG post ?

Boris Johnson is a disgraceful man I nearly fell off my chair when he uttered those words
No one should get away with child abuse and MaryEliza is correct historical doesn’t necessarily mean dead
Should there never be anything about Dr Shipman or Fred Wests crimes because they choose to cop out of it and kill themselves and they aren t here to defend themselves
If the investigations are robust and without doubt they should be investigated whether dead or alive

I agree absolutely MissA I meant his disgraceful language. That is not acceptable.

ab because the rule of law and due process doesn’t always work as it should, it doesn’t mean that all historic sex abuse cases should not be followed up but rather that systems should work better and be improved

The problem is if an allegation is brought against a person who is dead, they obviously cannot face a trial and would it be fair if they could not protect their reputation. If perpetrators of abuse are still alive then they should face trial. People who have been abused may feel better if they get the chance to vocalise what they have been through.

CS is dead but it’s quite right that the Child Abuse Enquiry is investigating allegations about him - at the very least maybe DS ( and others) will learn that they cannot turn a deaf ear to allegations of such abuse. A lot has been learned re JS as well and what he was allowed to get away with. We can learn from the dead and so we should .

I had never heard that word before ( a schoolboy word?)
Boris seems to get away with saying almost anything, but
Reducing this subject to gutter level is pretty stupid and crass, unfortunately just like himself quite often.

Cold cases are worth looking into as new information comes to light.

So don’t you believe Jimmy Savilles case should have been investigated Newnanny

Dr Shipman was found guilty and sentenced. Fred West took his life and his wife was found guilty and sentenced.

Bodies were dug up the the West home

I see the latest stupidity B. Johnson has come out with and look back on D. Cameron and his Chancellors' (sorry can't remember his name) austerity policy and wonder what the hell Eton were teaching kids 20/30 years ago.

I sincerely hope they have changed their approach to Ethics.

BJ hasn’t come out with stupidty but with a crass obscenity. We should call it what it is

Some people believe the use of money and resources in investigating historic crimes could be better spent on detecting and prosecuting current crimes. Generally speaking, I don't happen to agree with such a view. Resources are sadly lacking but that is an argument for providing more resources - something which he and his party are loath to do.

Even accepting that people are entitled, provided they do so within the law, to express an opinion, I think the way he chose to express his view on this issue is vile, insulting and totally unacceptable. It trivialises in a most obscene way a very serious issue - something that may have severely damaged, both physically and mentally, people's lives, in some cases making it impossible for them to have loving, intimate relationships or normal friendships.

Johnson has made so many vile comments that I think his political career should finally be consigned to the dustbin.

Can he please take his freeloading talentless father with him too.

I expect he was going for the dinosaur vote. As many have said, how can he read about the terrible things that happened at Medomsley and Manchester United, to name but two and feel that we can just dismiss the sufferings of those children, who even as adults suffer still and say it was a long time a go, and the (unspoken) get over it.

So its not right to investigate the historic abuse cases involving politicians etc but according to many on here last week it was the right thing to do with the Michael jackson allegations.Excuse me for being confused .
I watched a documentary about child sex abuse in the 50's and 60's in a childrens home in Scotland.The now elderly men were in tears as they recounted what had happened to them .It still affects them so it must be investigated .Of course it wont as we already know Mrs May "lost" the files when she was in the Home Office .

paddyann who were your accusations aimed at? I have read back through this thread and I do not think anyone has defended Boris Johnson or supported his views, we are all in agreement that these cases should be pursued and prosecuted.