Editor-in-Chief talks about Exaro’s huge investigation with Iain Dale and Tessa Jowell
By Exaro Team | 10 June 2015
Editor-in-Chief Mark Watts joined presenter Iain Dale and Labour mayoral candidate Tessa Jowell for LBC’s Newsmakers to discuss Exaro’s investigation into the ‘Westminster paedophile network’.
As LBC put out the final edition of a series of reports about the murdered schoolboy, Vishal Mehrotra, the programme discussed the case and the wider scandal that has been steadily uncovered by Exaro over more than two-and-a-half years.
His father, Vishambar, a retired magistrate, suspects that Vishal’s murder is linked to a paedophile network that included VIPs, and believes that there was a police cover-up.
You can listen to the programme by clicking on the video above, with the discussion on child sex abuse taking up roughly the first half.
Jowell asked Watts how people with relevant information, especially whistleblowers who are worried about coming forward, can provide evidence.
Watts encouraged such people to come forward to Exaro. He also talked about the role that Exaro had played in sparking two operations at the Metropolitan Police Service into allegations against prominent people of child sex abuse.
Dale asked why Exaro, and LBC’s own reporter, had uncovered evidence when the police had failed to do so.
Watts said: “While we do not have the powers that the police have, we are trusted. That is actually, probably what it comes down to, is trust.”
But he said that Exaro was aware that attitudes had changed among police officers on the Met’s investigations into VIP paedophiles. He said: “There are officers working on these cases who are completely committed to getting results – getting justice.”
Exaro often features in other media, including overseas broadcasters and publications, especially because of its role in leading the exposure of evidence of a paedophile network among politicians and other prominent people in the UK.
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