Britain’s Labour government came under pressure to act after Elon Musk reignited a decade-old scandal involving child sexual abuse mainly by men of Pakistani heritage.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced plans for a nationwide review of grooming gang evidence and five government-backed local inquiries. She stopped short of launching a statutory national inquiry, as called for by the Conservatives and some Labour MPs, but this marks a clear shift in the government's position.

The UK government on Thursday announced a "rapid" national review of the extent of sexual exploitation of children by grooming gangs and several new local inquiries into cases of abuse.The issue was at the centre of a political firestorm earlier this month when a war of words broke out between US tech billionaire Elon Musk and Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The Home Secretary has announced a series of local reviews into grooming gangs after she was threatened with legal action over the issue.

It has been confirmed that there will be government-backed local inquiries into grooming gangs. The "rapid audit" is set to only take three months and will be overseen by Baroness Casey, who is also leading an independent commission into adult social care.

Nigel Farage has renewed calls for a national inquiry into grooming gangs, criticising the Jay Review as inadequate. Speaking at Reform UK’s North West conference, he claimed a targeted investigation was needed into what he described as “deeply racist” crimes.