British paedophile ring 'protected by Parliament and Downing Street'

A powerful paedophile network may have operated in Britain protected by its connections to Parliament and Downing Street, a senior Labour politician suggested yesterday. Speaking from the back benches of the House of Commons,

Tom Watson, the deputy chairman of the Labour Party, called on the Metropolitan Police to reopen a closed criminal inquiry into paedophilia. Indicating his anxiety that there had been an establishment cover-up,

Mr Watson referred to the case of Peter Righton, who was convicted in 1992 of importing and possessing illegal homosexual pornographic material. Righton, a former consultant to the National Children’s Bureau and lecturer at the National Institute for Social Work in London, admitted two illegal importation charges and one charge of possessing obscene material. He was fined £900.

At Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Watson said the evidence file used to convict Righton “if it still exists, contains clear intelligence of a widespread paedophile ring”. He told a hushed Commons: “One of its members boasts of a link to a senior aide of a former Prime Minister, who says he could smuggle indecent images of children from abroad.

“The leads were not followed up, but if the files still exist, I want to ensure that the Metropolitan Police secure the evidence, re-examine it, and investigate clear intelligence suggesting a powerful paedophile network linked to Parliament and No 10.”

 In the aftermath of Mr Watson’s remarks, media outlets speculated that he was referring to the late former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath – who was the subject of unsubstantiated rumours about sex with under-age boys – or to Sir Peter Morrison, a former Downing Street aide who died in 1995.

 However, The Independent understands that Mr Watson’s comments were not aimed at either Sir Edward or Sir Peter, but at a living person associated with Margaret Thatcher’s administration. They are thought to involve the activities of the Paedophile Information Exchange, a pro-paedophile group in existence between 1974 and 1984, which believed there should be no age of consent.

Responding to the remarks, David Cameron said the MP had raised “a very difficult and complex case”, adding he was unclear which former Prime Minister Mr Watson was referring to. Criticising the BBC’s record on Savile – who was never caught and died last year aged 84, the Prime Minister said: "These allegations do leave many institutions - perhaps particularly the BBC - with serious questions to answer -

I think above all the question, 'How did he get away with this for so long?'.” He told MPs: "The most important thing is that the police investigation is properly resourced and is allowed to continue.”

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“I was absolutely dumbfounded": Soldier sacked 72 HOURS before he gets his full pension

Sergeant Lee Nolan was so furious about losing out on at least £100,000 that he sent his six military medals to David Cameron

AN Iraq war veteran was made redundant just 72 HOURS before ­qualifying for a full Army ­pension.
Sergeant Lee Nolan will lose out on at least £100,000 after he became one of 20,000 soldiers who are being axed in savage military cuts.

He was so furious at losing his job, his Army home and financial ­security after risking his life for his country that he sent his six military medals to David Cameron.

And in a moving letter to the PM he wrote: “The events of the past 12 months have turned my life on its head and sullied my near-18 years of loyal and exemplary service to my ­country.

“The medals I have enclosed would only serve to ­remind me of the shocking way I have been treated.”
Sgt Nolan is one of at least 80 soldiers, sailors and aircrew made redundant when they are less than a year away from qualifying.


There have been claims that they are being intentionally ­selected to save the MoD millions of pounds.
And the axed troops’ plight has sparked calls for a review, with an online petition demanding that the issue is debated in Parliament.

Sgt Nolan, 43 – who did tours of duty in Bosnia, Iraq and Kosovo – joined the Army when he was 24.
He was made compulsorily ­redundant from his job as a medical technician in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers last September, leaving on August 31 after a 12-month notice period.

Depending on their rank, forces personnel aged over 40 need 16 or 18 years’ service to earn a pension and lump sum when they leave.

When Sgt Nolan’s redundancy was worked out he was stunned to find his service was 17 years and 362 days... just three days short.

He said: “I was absolutely dumbfounded. In one moment I lost my ­livelihood, my way of life and the pension I’d relied on to start again.”

He was given a redundancy payout of £93,000 and when he reaches 60 he will get a £5,000-a-year pension. If he had been made redundant three days later he would have received £188,500, made up of a £76,000 lump sum plus £6,250 a year until he was 60. After he complained, he made a heartbreaking discovery.

He said: “They discovered there had been an administrative error. They had only wanted 20 redundancies. I was the 21st.”

Appalled, Sgt Nolan, who has been forced to move in with ­relatives in Manchester, sent his ­letter and medals to Mr Cameron.

He received a letter dated a month ago thanking him and promising a reply but has not heard any more. He has now joined the campaign group Pensions Justice for Troops, which says ­redundant personnel will miss out on at least £40million between them.

Spokeswoman Jayne Bullock said: “People who leave the Armed Forces lose a whole way of life and need financial security as they adapt, retrain and start over again.”

A Number 10 spokesman ­declined to comment on the letter. The MoD said nearness to qualifying for a pension was not a factor in being selected for redundancy.

Read about another sad exit from the Army: "All I ever wanted to be was a soldier so it is heartbreaking to be leaving": Coldstream Guard who lost leg in Afghanistan faces discharge