Rochdale | Pakistan

BRITAIN’S plans to deport the ringleader of the Rochdale grooming gang are “entirely an internal matter of the United Kingdom” and have “no connection whatsoever” with Pakistan, the Foreign Office spokesperson told the BBC. Calls have mounted for Shabir Ahmed’s deportation following his recent release from prison, but has been held up due to a law from 1971 that bars the deportation of Commonwealth citizens. Ahmed, who came to the UK in the late 1960s, was one of nine men from Rochdale and Oldham found guilty of exploiting girls as young as 13 at two takeaway restaurants. According to the BBC, he had dual British-Pakistani citizenship before being stripped of his UK passport following his 2012 conviction for multiple counts of rape and sexual offences against girls. Andy Burnham, who is set to replace Sir Keir Starmer as prime minister next, has described Ahmed as a “vile criminal” who he wants deported. Although Home Minis­ter Shabana Mahmood has indicated plans to amend the law, it appears that Ahmed’s remo...

LONDON: UK Home Minister Shabana Mahmood announced plans on Monday to change British law to allow a convicted paedophile, who led a so-called grooming gang, to be deported following his release from prison. Shabir Ahmed was jailed in 2012 for 22 years for multiple child sexual offences including rape when he was the ringleader of a gang of similarly predatory men targeting girls in Rochdale, northern England. He left prison on licence earlier this month under the country’s early release programme. Calls have mounted for the deportation of Shabir Ahmed, who held dual British-Pakistani citizenship before being stripped of the former following his 2012 conviction for multiple counts of child sexual offences. Immigration laws had prevented the deportation of Commonwealth nationals who arrived in UK before 1973 But a 1971 immigration law has prevented his deportation, as it prohibits the removal of Commonwealth nationals who, like Ahmed, arrived in Britain before 1973. Announcing the law would be changed through a...

The UK government is in talks with Pakistan over the possibility of deporting a leader of the Rochdale grooming gang to the country, the BBC reported on Friday. Shabbir Ahmed, who has dual British-Pakistani citizenship, was released from prison this week after his 2012 conviction on multiple counts of rape and sexual offences against girls. British officials told his victims that Ahmed could not be deported to Pakistan because of a 55-year-old law barring his removal. However, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has asked the home secretary to review Ahmed’s case following calls for his deportation from the UK. The BBC reported that Andy Burnham, who is widely tipped as a future leader, was among those calling for Ahmed to be deported. “We have raised this issue with our counterparts in Islamabad and we are committed to doing everything possible to deport foreign national offenders, and we’re clear that they should have no place in this country,” said a spokesperson for the British premier’s office. “As previ...

The UK government is in talks with Pakistan over the possibility of deporting a leader of the Rochdale grooming gang to the country, the BBC reported on Friday. Shabbir Ahmed, who has dual British-Pakistani citizenship, was released from prison this week after his 2012 conviction on multiple counts of rape and sexual offences against girls. British officials told his victims that Ahmed could not be deported to Pakistan because of a 55-year-old law barring his removal. However, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has asked the home secretary to review Ahmed’s case following calls for his deportation from the UK. The BBC reported that Andy Burnham, who is widely tipped as a future leader, was among those calling for Ahmed to be deported. “We have raised this issue with our counterparts in Islamabad and we are committed to doing everything possible to deport foreign national offenders, and we’re clear that they should have no place in this country,” said a spokesperson for the British premier’s office. “As previ...