Keith Vaz accuses GPs of failing girl victims

GPs have been accused of failing to report cases of female genital mutilation to the police, as MPs warned not enough was being done to prevent the crime.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the Commons home affairs select committee, said he feared doctors were simply “observing not reporting” FGM cases when young victims attended their surgeries.

He added that it was “astonishing” that the Royal College of GPs was unable to say how many FGM cases its members had reported to the authorities and warned that the lack of police referrals would result in more girls suffering abuse each month.

The parliamentary committee’s inquiry into FGM came after a warning from Met Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley about the “bizarre” lack of cases referred to police from the NHS.

The hearing also heard calls for TV advertising to raise awareness that FGM is illegal, and for posters to be displayed in every health centre, giving victims and those at risk information about the practice and who to contact for help.