[DanaC]

Liberal MP Sir Cyril Smith was part of a high-level paedophile ring operating at Westminster in the 1970s, a Labour MP has claimed.

Simon Danczuk alleges in a new book Sir Cyril used his influence to escape prosecution for sexually abusing boys.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the MP was part of an "informal" network of sex abusers.

And he claimed police were pressured by the authorities to drop investigations into his activities.

"Had he been prosecuted, then the house of cards would have fallen, in terms of that paedophile network, and it could have brought the government down," the Labour MP told Today.

He also claimed child abuse allegations against Sir Cyril were widely known at the time and were even raised in public, at a Liberal party conference.
Sir Cyril's family have said they are "saddened" by Mr Danczuk's allegations "made so long after Sir Cyril Smith's death and at a time he is no longer able to defend himself".

"Sir Cyril always denied accusations made against him while he was living," they added in a statement issued when extracts from Mr Danczuk's book were serialised in the Daily Mail.

Mr Danczuk, MP for Sir Cyril's former constituency Rochdale, alleges police received at least 144 complaints about the late Liberal MP but MI5 and Special Branch put pressure on police officers to drop investigations into the alleged abuse.

"When he was initially arrested, he used the local power that he had, in the 60s, to be able to convince people that he shouldn't be prosecuted," he told the Today programme.

"But once he became a member of Parliament in 1972, I think he joined an, obviously informal, network of paedophiles that existed in and around Westminster."

Asked how he could say that with certainty, Mr Danczuk said Sir Cyril had been identified as attending Elm Guest House in south-west London, adding: "[This is] where it is alleged other significant paedophiles attended."
In 2012, the Metropolitan Police launched an investigation into allegations of sexual abuse by politicians in the late 1970s and 1980s, after Labour MP Tom Watson raised concerns in the House of Commons about a "powerful paedophile network linked to Parliament and No 10".

The investigation, Operation Fernbridge, is centred on the former Elm Guest House in Barnes, the scene of alleged parties involving MPs and other members of the establishment.


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The Metropolitan Police has confirmed Sir Cyril was among those who visited the premises.

The Crown Prosecution Service has said he should have been prosecuted for 1960s abuse in Rochdale. Sir Cyril died in 2010 aged 82.

It was alleged he raped boys at the Knowl View residential school and abused boys at Cambridge House Children's Home, a privately-run care home in Rochdale, which closed in 1965.

He had a long association with Knowl View, where he was on the management board when he was a councillor.

Sir Cyril was originally a Labour councillor in Rochdale and later a Liberal then Liberal Democrat MP for the town from 1972 to 1992.

There is little doubt that former Rochdale MP Sir Cyril Smith raped some of his victims, the town's current MP has claimed.

It comes after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) admitted Sir Cyril, a Lib Dem, should have been prosecuted for abusing young boys in the 1960s.

Labour MP Simon Danczuk said the allegations of rape had been made by people who attended Knowl View.

The council-run residential school closed down in 1992.

The abuse by Sir Cyril was also said to have taken place at Cambridge House Children's Home, a privately-run care home which closed in 1965.

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Twelve men have so far accused Sir Cyril of abusing them in the 1960s, police have confirmed.

Mr Danczuk said: "We now know from other victims (of Cambridge House) that indecent assault is what he would have been prosecuted with but his abuse went on from there.

"There is no doubt about it from the witnesses that have come forward that rape would have been included in the allegations against him, absolutely.

"That is what is alleged by people who were at Knowl View, which is a special school within Rochdale local authority area, and that is where it is alleged - and it is openly out there - that he raped children."
A Greater Manchester Police (GMP) spokesman said eight victims originally came forward in the 1960s, with two more coming forward in 1999 and a further two making claims following recent media coverage.

The CPS has admitted Sir Cyril, who was a Labour councillor in the 1950s and 60s, should have been charged with sex crimes more than 40 years ago.

Although he faced no action following inquiries in 1970 and the 1990s, the CPS said procedural changes meant a prosecution would have been pursued today.

A high-ranking friend of Cyril Smith tried to warn off police investigating claims that he had been sexually abusing boys, a report reveals.

A senior detective investigating the claims against Smith said a magistrate made "veiled threats" to officers.

The detective's 1970 report to the Chief Constable of Lancashire said there was "prima facie" evidence of the MP's guilt.

The Director of Public Prosecution later advised against prosecuting.

The 14-page report by the detective superintendent, which has been redacted, has been seen by the BBC.

It said that Smith would have been "at the mercy of a competent counsel", but also reported that the MP's magistrate "buddy" had warned of "unfortunate repercussions for the police force and the town of Rochdale" should he be prosecuted.

The officer, whose name has been redacted from the report, was investigating allegations of sex abuse made by eight young boys, six of whom who had been at the privately-run Cambridge House care home in Rochdale.

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Smith was interviewed by the detective superintendent, who reported to former chief constable William Palfrey that "it seems impossible to excuse [Smith's] conduct".

"Over a considerable period of time, while sheltering beneath a veneer of responsibility, he has used his unique position to indulge in a series of indecent episodes with young boys towards whom he had a special responsibility," he wrote.

He said Smith was "most unimpressive during my interview with him".

The officer said: "He had difficulty in articulating and even the stock replies he proffered could only be obtained after repeated promptings from his solicitor.

"Were he ever to be placed in the witness box, he would be at the mercy of any competent counsel.

"Prima facie, he appears guilty of numerous offences of indecent assault."

The officer reported that he interviewed the magistrate who told him in his "personal opinion" he "sincerely hoped that this matter is not prosecuted before the court".

"In my opinion, as a Justice of the Peace, it is not court-worthy," he told the officer.
"The prosecution can do no good at all and the backlash will have unfortunate repercussions for the police force and the town of Rochdale."

He also told the officer it was "no secret" that he and Smith "are buddies, and not only politically".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ester-28330779
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ester-20568253

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27047442
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-28141531