Rupert Lowe calls grooming gang scandal ‘something the equivalent of the Holocaust’

The remarks have been condemned by political figures and Jewish leaders.

A spokesperson for the Jewish Leadership Council said: “The genocide of six million Jewish men, women and children by the Nazi regime and its collaborators was unique both in its systematic nature and industrial scale.

“Drawing comparisons between the Holocaust and contemporary tragedies, however terrible, is not only inaccurate but deeply offensive to survivors and the wider Jewish community.”

David Taylor, Labour MP for Hemel Hempstead, urged Lowe to apologise for the “appalling comments”.

"Undoubtedly, the grooming gangs scandal was a disgusting failure of the state to protect vulnerable young women and girls, and it is right that we do everything in our power to find and punish the perpetrators. But to compare it to the systematic genocide of millions of Jewish people is downright offensive,” Taylor said.

"Rupert Lowe must apologise to the Jewish community, many of whom are descendants of those who escaped or survived the Holocaust, for these appalling comments,” he added.

Lowe made the comments while introducing Restore Britain’s Makerfield candidate, local businesswoman Rebecca Shepherd, 53.

The inquiry established by Lowe examined long-running child sexual exploitation cases involving organised groups of men in towns such as Rotherham, Rochdale and Telford.

Some whistle-blowers have argued that police and social services failed to act decisively because of fears of being perceived as racist, given that the perpetrators in some of the highest-profile cases were of South Asian heritage.

In an email to the JC, Lowe appeared to stand by his remarks comparing the alleged cover-up with the Holocaust.

"The mass rape of hundreds of thousands of vulnerable white working-class girls by gangs of mainly Pakistani Muslim gangs is demonic evil, and I will make no apologies for saying so.

“Sexual torture inflicted on many of the most vulnerable members of our society, raped by thousands of men in some cases. Murder, blackmail, physical torture. It is all so much worse than any of us can possibly imagine. This has happened for decades, in almost every town and city in Britain.

“The testimonies we heard at our rape gang inquiry hearings were the most depraved words I have ever witnessed.”

“Vulnerable English girls raped and kept in cages. One girl was raped by a dog, as Muslim men bet on the outcome,” he alleged.

“This was all allowed to happen exactly because politicians were too cowardly to highlight this cancer. I will not make that same mistake."

This is not the first time Lowe has been criticised for offensive remarks.

In May last year, the Board of Deputies called for the independent MP to apologise over “bizarre and outdated antisemitic language” he had used during a recording before an interview. 

In the clip, Lowe commented on the size of the camera his interviewer had set up, saying: “In days gone by you would call it a Jewish camera, but that would be politically incorrect, because it’s so small.”

Lowe, the MP for Great Yarmouth, previously sat as a Reform MP before having the whip suspended after falling out with Nigel Farage and being accused of bullying – accusations he denied – and launching Restore Britain.

The party has attracted support from sections of the far-right and X owner Elon Musk.

Polling ahead of next month’s Makerfield by-election suggests Restore Britain is currently running in third place behind Labour and Reform UK, and pollsters believe the party could influence the outcome by drawing support away from Reform.

The party’s policies include advocating for a ban on kosher and halal slaughter and “remigration”, which would mean mass deportations, including of immigrants resident in the UK legally, with the intention of reversing recent migration trends.

The party’s manifesto proposes deporting foreign-born legal residents if they live in social housing or claim benefits.