UK faces Trump Jr.'s fury: Grooming gang inaction amid lobster welfare law

The UK government is facing growing criticism for its handling of child sexual exploitation by grooming gangs, even as it moves forward with a animal welfare policy banning the boiling of live lobsters.

After years of debate, the UK confirmed that boiling lobsters alive is incompatible with animal welfare laws. The government’s new strategy mandates that lobsters be stunned with an electric gun or chilled in cold air or ice before cooking. The move builds on a 2022 law recognizing that invertebrates, including lobsters, crabs, and octopuses, are sentient and feel pain.

The broader Labour-led welfare plan also includes outlawing hen cages and pig farrowing crates, ending puppy farming, consulting on banning electric shock collars for dogs, and introducing humane slaughter standards for farmed fish. Hunting rules will also be tightened, including a ban on shooting hares during breeding season and an end to trail hunting.

The decision drew sharp criticism from Donald Trump Jr., who tweeted: “I really wish they’d ban the roving gangs of migrant rapists and groomers. Apparently their priorities are elsewhere.”

UK grooming gangs inquiry in turmoil

Trump Jr.’s comment highlights wider public frustration over decades-long failures to tackle grooming gangs, predominantly involving men of British-Pakistani heritage sexually exploiting white girls. Cases first came to light in the early 2000s, with prosecutions beginning in 2010. Hundreds of perpetrators have been convicted across towns including Rotherham, Rochdale, Telford, and Oldham, with ongoing trials.

Multiple local and national inquiries, including the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse led by Professor Alexis Jay (2015–2022), have exposed systemic failures. Reports documented police and social service neglect, victim-blaming, and reluctance to act due to fears of being labelled racist. In Rotherham alone, at least 1,400 girls were abused between 1997 and 2013.

Public and political pressure led to a government-commissioned review by Louise Casey in 2025, which confirmed that authorities had avoided addressing race and ethnicity in these crimes. Casey recommended a full national statutory inquiry, accepted by the government. However, the inquiry has stalled after four survivors resigned from the victim liaison panel, citing disagreements over leadership appointments and the inquiry’s scope.

Starmer’s role and Government response

Critics, including Elon Musk, have accused Prime Minister Keir Starmer of complicity in past failures while he was director of public prosecutions. Experts note that Starmer was not involved in decisions to drop early cases and later supported reopening investigations.