We owe it to every victim of Jeffrey Epstein to better protect women and girls in Britain. And we will | Jess Phillips

I am furious that women and children have to endure a crisis like this for progress to become politically possible. But I will seize this moment Jess Phillips MP is parliamentary under-secretary of state for safeguarding and violence against women and girls Jess Phillips calls for Epstein files to be catalyst for long-term legislative change It always takes a calamity – a dreadful murder that reaches every front page, a mass paedophile ring being uncovered, or a political scandal unfolding – to make institutions sit up and act on violence against women and children. These windows of potential energy are never wasted by women’s rights activists. Historically, they have used them to build the #MeToo movement, to fight for legislation change and to push for greater resources for victims. I’ve done it, many times – “never waste a crisis” is my mantra. In the past few weeks, while the nation’s attention has been on the political fallout from the Epstein files, I have seen the opportunity to push for more, for better. To move beyond the throwaway line about the victims being the most important thing – and to actually make them just that. Deeds not words are what matter. If repentance and sorrow is all we achieve out of the courage of the Epstein victims, we will have failed; change is all that will suffice. Jess Phillips is MP for Birmingham Yardley and parliamentary under-secretary of state for safeguarding and violence against women and girls Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

By Jess Phillips