The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse will investigate institutional responses to allegations involving the late Lord Janner of Braunstone QC in a three week public hearing, starting on 12 October.
This hearing will examine whether the Labour politician’s public prominence led to deferential treatment from institutions including Leicestershire Police, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Leicestershire County Council and the Labour Party.
Issues relating to the anonymity of a witness mean that the majority of the hearing will be held in closed session, as discussed at the preliminary hearing this February and confirmed by the Chair in a determination. There will be no public access, live stream or transcript for the closed sessions, although a summary will be provided.
Lord Janner was facing 22 charges of child sexual abuse offences, relating to nine different boys, but was deemed too ill to stand criminal trial. He died in 2015 before a trial of the facts could take place.
In his 2016 report into CPS decision-making, retired judge Sir Richard Henriques concluded that three opportunities were missed to prosecute Lord Janner for indecent assault and buggery, as it then was.
This investigation will consider whether any attempts were made to exert improper influence in order to hinder or prevent an institution from effectively responding to the allegations against Lord Janner. It will not examine individual allegations.
The hearing will begin at 10.30am daily and will be held virtually using Zoom video conference technology. The timetable for the first week is available here.