Tracey Crouch, who resigned as Sport Minister in November 2018 has criticised the government for failing to protect “vulnerable people” in relation to the proposed law on sports coaches and sexual relations.
The law to make it illegal for sports coaches to have sexual relations with 16 and 17-year-old in their care was first announced in 2017, but is still yet to come in. Crouch described the law as a “no-brainer” and said that "Frustratingly it seems to have got bogged down in bureaucracy at the Ministry of Justice, the department that owns the legislation."
Ms Crouch's comments come just days after an inquiry found the Lawn Tennis Association missed repeated warnings about bullying and sexual abuse at one of the UK's top tennis centres. CEO of NSPCC agreed that it was “absolutely outrageous” the law had not yet been introduced.
The Ministry of Justice said in a statement: "We remain absolutely committed to protecting children and young people from the horrors of sexual abuse…we continue to keep the law under review. If brought in, the law would bring sports coaches in line with some other professionals - including teachers, doctors and social workers.
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