i'm victoria derbyshire. it's monday. i'm victoria derbyshire. the independent inquiry into child sex ulg abuse finally holds its first public hearings. i thought the idea of being flogged in the middle of the night by a sadistic drunken cottage mother with an ironing cord was the norm. this this inquiry is capable of opening some of that truth then that's a good thing. and that inquiry begins at 1030 and we'll bring you the proceedings live. an oscars moment to rank among the most infamous in history. la la land was mistakenly named as best picture. but minutes later the honour was given to moonlight. thousands of patients are feared to have been harmed after the nhs

mislaid more than half a million pieces of confidential medical correspondence, including cancer test results and treatment plans. we will bring you the story. here'sjoanna in the bbc newsroom with a summary of today's news. the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse in england and wales will hold its first public hearings today, more than two and a half years after it was set up by the government. it will begin by examining the mistreatment of british children in care orfrom poorfamilies who were sent to australia in the years after the second world war. the inquiry will be told that the scale of abuse they suffered was much wider than previously thought. organisers of this year's oscars say they're still trying to work out how the ceremony ended in chaos, after the wrong film was named best picture. the hollywood musical la la land was mistakenly revealed as the winner,

but during the acceptance speeches it was discovered the award should have gone to moonlight, which is a drama about a gay black youth coming to terms with his sexuality. the firm that counts the votes, pricewaterhousecoopers, has apologised, saying there was a mix—up with the award envelopes. the nhs has mislaid more than half a million items of patients‘ confidential medical correspondence, including treatment plans and cancer test results. the documents, sent between gps and hospitals over a period of five years, did not reach their recipients because they were mistakenly stored in a warehouse by private company nhs shared business services. the government is facing calls from conservative mps to scrap plans to limit access to a key disability benefit. it's thought changes to the rules on who qualifies for the personal independence payment could affect around 160,000 people. it comes as a key aide to theresa may said disability benefits reforms were needed to roll back the bizarre decisions of tribunals. the mobile phone company

nokia is bringing back one of its most famous models, the 3310. the company has struggled to compete in the smartphone era, but it hopes there'll be a demand for a simple phone with a battery that lasts for weeks. the handset was first launched in 2000, with the classic mobile game snake. that's a summary of the latest bbc news. more at 10.30. thank you. and thank you to you for your messages on the state of your children's schools. we were talking about this at the start of the programme. some schools with tightened budgets and others getting more money because of changes in the way the government is funding schools in england. karen says there are more children in schools which now house children to 18 years of age, soi now house children to 18 years of age, so i think the increase is not proportionate to the increasing provision. matt says how about funding all schoolkids fairly instead of giving some far more than

the education budget? and jonathan says the uk education system is a shambles and a mess and it is only our children who will suffer. i am going to home due to my kids once they have finished primary school. reyes says i know a lot of school funding is wasted. schools need to be much more careful in the way they set their budgets. i believe schools could still operate efficiently and effectively on less money and pupils could still reach their full potential of the budget is not wasted. thank you for those and keep getting in touch. you are very welcome, as you know. text messages are charged at the standard network rate. jessica is back now with the sport. starting with football. manchester united have won theirfirst piece silverware of the season, clinching the efl cup after a 3—2 win over southampton at wembley. the saints were the better side for long periods of the game, and in fact they had a goal disallowed early on. zlatan ibrahimovic put united 1—0 up. just after the break,

southampton levelled the game at 2—2 through manolo gabbiadini. who else but ibrahimovic to score the winner with 3 minutes left on the clock? it's caused managerjose mourniho to call for help from the club's fans, to ensure ibrahimovic stays another season at the club. i don't beg for players but if needed i think maybe united fans can go to the door of his house and stay there, and stay there all night if needed. i think they will go fish oil. it is a big disappointment of course. today, it was a quality game. a third hat trick in 9 games for tottenham striker harry kane

helped his side to a 4—0 win over stoke, and move them up to second in the premier league. kane completed his treble in just 23 minutes in the first half, as spurs made it 8 wins in a row at white hart lane. it's led manager pochettino to describe the striker as one of the best in the world. england's rugby union head coach eddie jones, never shy of speaking his mind, has criticised italy's tactics against his side in their six nations match. jones says italy's decision not to compete at the breakdown wasn't rugby. england were left bamboozled by italy's approach, as they slumped to 10—5 down at half time. but five second—half tries ensured england were not left horribly embarrassed at twickenham. 36—15 the final score. 17 wins on the bounce for england, butjones was not impressed. well, it wasn't rugby. let's face

the facts. you've got to have an offside line to play the game. italy was smart and congratulations to their coaching staff and the players, they executed that and played brilliantly but it wasn't by. played brilliantly but it wasn't rugby. if i was a bbc will be asking the rfu for their money back because you haven't had a rugby game. we will have to go outside and train now so you get some proper rugby. european championship silver medallist and 2012 olympian roberto pavoni has retired from swimming. he came second in the a00m individual medley in the 2014 european championships in berlin, also taking bronze in the 200m individual medley. pavoni will now take up a career in coaching in the sport. that is all the sport for now and i will be back with the headlines at 10:30am. thank you. welcome to the programme. the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse in england and wales is finally about to begin its first public hearings today — in about 20 minutes in fact —

two and a half years after it was set up. it is expected to take five years to complete and is a really far—reaching inquiry looking into historic child abuse in institutions like the catholic church and care homes. it begins today with an investigation of the appalling treatment of thousands of british children who were sent to australia after the second world war. many were orphans with hopes of a new life. the bbc has been told the inquiry will hear new evidence about the scale of what went on and the claim that it was covered up. a key witness in the inquiry will be david hill, the former head of the australian broadcaster abc. he was sent from britain to australia as a child to one of the schools run by the fairbridge society, a british charity. our correspondent tom symonds met him and took him back to the shipping port of tilbury, where 58 years ago, he left the uk for good. we arrived here on a bleak april day. it was raining. it was getting dark early. and the ship dwarfed the pier.

and we had never seen anything like it. we had been sold the idea that we were going to the land of milk and honey, that we came from a very poor family, as most of the child migrants did, and up to that point they bought us new wardrobes of clothes, and we were in the state cabin with five—course lunches and six—course dinners. we were treated like royalty. we thought, well, we've signed up for the right scheme. and it wasn't until we reached sydney that the thud of reality hit all of us. our lovely wardrobes that we were given here in england were taken from us, and we were issued with hard work denim clothing. the kids were all running around midwinter barefoot on the farm. they looked terrible, because the kids cut each other‘s hair. those kids would have gone through life with nobody ever putting a warm arm around them,

giving them comfort, and nurturing, and support, and encouragement. they were the most vulnerable, they were the least protected, they were the most abused. i was luckier than them. and lucky of all, most of all, because my mum eventually followed us out. those kids never saw their mums again. they thought the idea of being flogged in the middle of the night by a sadistic drunken cottage mother with an ironing cord was the norm. what is your estimate of the number of children affected by some form of sexual abuse? i put the figure at over 60% of the kids that went to fairbridge were sexually abused. 60%? 60%, and i think if you look at the conditions that prevailed in the other child migrant institutions i'd be staggered if the figure isn't equally high, or even higher, in some of the catholic boys homes in western australia. people will say these were different times, we didn't know what we know now about child development, things were not managed well, is that an excuse? it's not an excuse. if you go back to the 19505, the british government sent

a fact—finding mission to australia. and they report back and the british government, using standards that prevailed in the 19505, drew up what they called a blacklist and put fairbridge farm and other child migrant institutions on the blacklist, defined them as being unfit for children. the british government not only continued to approve children to be sent, but financially subsidised them going. i'm surprised how vulnerable it has made me feel. what do you mean by that? that it could happen. and to happen to the extent that it did. this is an enquiry that has been quite bitterly condemned for failing to do anything in the view of some people for two and a half years. this is the first time it will have public hearings about the subject

you are so concerned about. what can it achieve? from my point of view, only good can come of it. because the truth will be known. it seems to me that the greater the evil, the stronger the conspiracy to keep it a secret and keep it covered up, so if this enquiry is capable of opening some of that truth, then that's a good thing. it is almost unbelievable, isn't it? we can speak now to clifford walsh, who experienced sexual abuse when he was sent from london to live at a catholic institution in australia. margaret humphreys is also with us, the director of the child migrants trust. she has dedicated her life to reuniting lost migrant children with theirfamilies. i reuniting lost migrant children with their families. i know reuniting lost migrant children with theirfamilies. i know you are reuniting lost migrant children with their families. i know you are about to go into the inquiry, margaret, so i will talk to you first, if i may?

and clifford i will be with you in a moment. tell us what work you have done to try to bring these former children back with their families.” would like to state straightaway that these children were not orphans. they had mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters. over the years that has been part of the myth. they are not orphans. i would like to make that really clear to your viewers. we have spent 30 yea rs to your viewers. we have spent 30 years bringing child migrants home to meet their mothers, their fathers, theirfamilies to meet their mothers, their fathers, their families and communities. in the early days, 25 or 30 years ago, we used to bring one person home at a time. these we re one person home at a time. these were former child migrants, some of whom left here when they were four or five years of age. over the next

few weeks we are going to hear the most horrific stories of their times in these residential institutions overseas. even with orphans, it seems hard to justify this policy back then. but you are saying they we re back then. but you are saying they were not orphans. so what on earth was the rationale? i think hopefully the inquiry is going to explore this with people and look at the policy, look at what happened to families, to children, and particularly the emphasis on this really important inquiry. it has taken as 30 years to get this inquiry. some of those questions have got to be answered. get this inquiry. some of those questions have got to be answeredlj know questions have got to be answered.” know you have got to go that anything i can ask one more question, if i may. —— buti

anything i can ask one more question, if i may. —— but i think i can ask you one more question. can you give us examples of the cruelty some of these children were subjected to? perhaps i can answer it best this way. this week we are going to hearfrom it best this way. this week we are going to hear from the child migrants. for the first time in the history of child migration. and we have got a long history of treating our children like this. we are going to hear their voices for the first time. and i would just say let's pause and listen to them. just for a moment. we will get an idea of what happened to them, what happened to theirfamilies. it happened to them, what happened to their families. it is happened to them, what happened to theirfamilies. it is going to be hard. it is going to be very hard for us to hear it, but we must listen and we must hear it and we must learn the lessons. clifford walsh, thank you for joining us from australia. you're welcome. you were told, i think,

clifford, that your parents were dead, but that wasn't true? no, not at all. i had a mother. my father, of course, died in the war. and i went through life thinking that i had no parents and it wasn't until margaret humphreys came on the scene that i found out i still had a mother and ifinally that i found out i still had a mother and i finally met her when that i found out i still had a mother and ifinally met her when i was 50. wow, you were nine then, when you stepped off the ship from london. that's right. what did you think was going on? well, i was basically looking forward to it because they made all these wonderful promises of how great things were in australia. i was a bit naive because someone in england said that in australia there was 100 sheep for every person so when we got to the wall at freemantle, i

sort of half hoped i'd see 100 sheep waiting for me, but that didn't materialise. i didn't realise they only outnumbered us 100—1. we were sent to two days quarantine. until this point, i had every faith in adults, but it quickly diminished after that. after i was flogged on the second day i was there because myself and another boy couldn't carry a crowbar three miles in the desired time. it was just too heavy for us. and we were beaten within an inch you are our lives and then he sat us on his knee and said i don't like to hit boys because it hurts me, you know. what a load of rubbish that was because i was sure he

enjoyed it. i never saw a man beat children more than he did. this was the catholic institution... yes, he was a clishian brother. and you were also sexually abused at that place as well? at least 30 times. wow. five by one person and at least 25 bya five by one person and at least 25 by a person who was in charge of me for a few months. it wasn't until he tried to rape me or half succeeded in raping me and i was screaming and so forth and he put his old fella in my mouth and evak lated and left gurgling and spluttering for 25 minutes that he let me out and i went and i saw the priest in charge, i won't mention his name, and i told him and he then reported it to the

principal. the principal called me to his office and he spoke so harshly to me, i thought i was this trouble and i didn't dare say anything about this brother. so i said the priest must have misunderstood what i said and that was the end of that. i was let go mercifully because i thought i was infor mercifully because i thought i was in for another sound thrashing and because i opened my mouth i was shipped off. can i ask you clifford, imean shipped off. can i ask you clifford, i mean such horrors perpetrated against you as a boy. what impact does that have on you as you're growing up into adult life? well, for the first 11 years, ijoined the navy and i was very much a loner. i wouldn't trust anybody. and even, even when i got married, i didn't like anybody to touch me, no one to put their arms around me, no one. male forfemale

put their arms around me, no one. male for female and that goes, that still continues today. i don't want anybody to touch me. i don't know how i imagined to have children because i didn't even like my wife to sit next to me and i love her dearly. it's a scandal that this independent inquiry into child sex abuse is going to explore and investigate. do you think that 60 yea rs investigate. do you think that 60 years on, it can get to the heart of why this decision was made to send thousands of british children abroad? well, it's got to come out because we must see that this can never happen because in the 80s they sent convicts out to australia, but we didn't steal anything. we didn't commitany we didn't steal anything. we didn't commit any crime. yet we were dumped ina commit any crime. yet we were dumped in a hell that i honestly think was worse on the convicts had. clifford, thank you very much for talking to us. we appreciate your

time and your openness, thank you. you're welcome. thank you very much, clifford walsh. and we will bring you the start of the abuse inquiry at 10.30am. all these british children were isn't abroad for a better life is because some of the former child migrants are nearing the end of their life which is why they're starting the child sex abuse inquiry with this area. we'll bring you the proceedings live just after 10.30am. we'll go back to la and talk about the mess—up and look at other notorious mix—ups. is it an insult to disabled people to suggest that those who are, quote, taking pills at home who suffer from anxiety are not, quote, "really disabled". labour says it is. the words were uttered by the head

of theresa may's policy board the tory mp george freeman. at issue is who in future should such receive benefits. benefits tribunals have ruled that ministers should extend the scope of the new personal independence payments to another 160,000 people at a cost of more than £3 billion. norman smith is in westminster. they are facing a backlash and it is not the first time this government got into difficulties and suffered grief over curbs to disability benefits. you think about the last budget of george osborne when he tried to push through cuts to personal independence payments and iain duncan smith resigned from the cabinet. it was almost the start of the unravelling of the cameron—osborne government. well, now there is another head of steam building up following this court

ruling which in effect means many, many more people will be able to claim personal independence payments becausically, extending it to people who have mental health issues, people who suffer from dementia or who suffered a stroke or are suffering from schizophrenia and the government have reacted basically by saying we cannot afford this. it's going to cost nearly £4 billion by 2022 and they sthuk out an announcement saying they were reversing this court ruling. on thursday, on friday, on the day of the by—election results when all of us were the by—election results when all of us were looking elsewhere, we weren't focussed on this. that has added to the grief and let me read this. this is from the oldest conservative think—tank the bow group, they said, "this is the behaviour that gives the conservative party a bad name, attacking the most in need and kicking people when they're down." this morning heidi allen had this message for the disabilities minister. if i was in her shoes i

would, i think, minister. if i was in her shoes i would, ithink, take minister. if i was in her shoes i would, i think, take the financial hit, say ok, we need to accept this. now, let's really look at this policy which is something that needs it happen anyway and just review the whole thing from top to bottom and i think in the end if we did that, we'd work hand—in—hand with charities and people who were disabled because they would know we're trying to build a system that works. what added fuel to the fire is the comments by george freeman who is mrs may's head of her policy unit. so he is, if you like, her big brains. and over the weekend, he said that the court rulings were bizarre, these were just tweaks to the system, but the most incendiary remarks was when he suggested these people who would get pips were not really disabled, they were just people taking pills to help them cope with anxiety. listen to what he said. look, the truth on the disability budget is we spend £50 billion a year on disability

benefits and what we're trying to make sure is we get them to the right people who are most in need. he didn't mention these tweaks are actually to do with rolling back some bizarre decisions through the tribunals which means that benefits are given to people who take pills at home. we want to make sure we get the money to the really disabled people who need it. he put out a tweet. he says, "having suffered myself as a child from childhood anxiety and depression, i don't need any anxiety and depression, i don't need a ny lectures anxiety and depression, i don't need any lectures on the damage anxiety does." well, what gives this more resonance, theresa may made mental health one of her cornerstone issues, remember that speech saying she wanted to end the stigma attached to mental health. here is a reminder of what she said. this is a historic opportunity to right a wrong and give people deserving of compassion and support the attention

and treatment they deserve. and for all of us to change the way we view mental illness so striving to improve mental well— being is mental illness so striving to improve mental well—being is seen as just as natural, positive and good as striving to improve our physical well—being. not that long ago. we've got the budget on the horizon. any chance of it, things being changed before then? well, it's possible because let's be honest, it has happened before. you think of george osborne backing down over personal independence payments and tax credits so it has happened before. they won't want to back doub, but i think they're in a realjam here because the disability charities are up because the disability charities are up in arms because they say look, if you suffer from say dementia, you can have as profound problems out and about as if you are blind. so why shouldn't they get this benefit? more than that, the disability tribunals, they went through the cases in real detail and you know, we clearly know increasingly the

difficulties people have with mental health issues. so they're under pressure, not just health issues. so they're under pressure, notjust politically, but from the mental health charities and the last thing to say is the government, before they announced they were going to try and rewrite they were going to try and rewrite the rules without anyone noticing, they didn't consult anyone, they didn't consult parliament or the disclaket charities didn't consult parliament or the discla ket charities and didn't consult parliament or the disclaket charities and they tried to sneak it out, for that and for mr freeman's comments, there is a real backlash building up. thank you, norman. if you are somebody who takes pills at home for anxiety, get in touch with me. we'd like to get in touch with me. we'd like to get in touch with you. the nhs has mislaid more than half a million items of patients' confidential medical correspondence, including treatment plans and cancer test results. the documents, sent between gps and hospitals over a period of five years, did not reach their recipients because they were mistakenly stored in a warehouse by private company nhs shared business services. our health editor hugh pym is here.

so, where are they? well, victoria, nhs england say they have tracked down all these letters now. this was over a period of five years from 2011 to 2016. they were 500,000 items of correspondence, spent from hospitals to gps, telling the gp about where the patient‘s treatment had got to and what needed to be followed up. they were items which couldn't get to the gp surgery because they were sent back because the patient had moved, in most cases, so this firm were brought in to sort of redirect them to get to the proper distin nation where the patient was. the trouble is they ended up in a warehouse and that's the nub of the problem. nhs england say they have managed to get hold of them all and follow them all up and them all and follow them all up and the 500,000 has boiled down to 2500 patients whose treatment might have been affected because the gp didn't know the full story and quite a few

of the 500,000 were fairly routine bits of correspondence, but it does raise a lot of questions about whether the 200 or more have been seriously affected. right. and when will we know the answer to that? who is trying to find out how seriously afeted or otherwise? nhs england say there is no evidence that anyone has been affected of those 2500, but they are still pursuing it. labour are saying we got wind of this last summer, at the very end of the parliamentary session, the health secretary, jeremy hunt, put out a brief statement saying there was a problem with redirecting the correspondence, but we weren't told the 500,000. labour want to know why has it taken so long for this emerge and what was the full story? why we re and what was the full story? why were they in a warehouse and what was going on and labour are pushing for a nswers was going on and labour are pushing for answers in the house of commons so we may yet learn more about this as the day goes on. thank you very much, hugh pym is our health editor. we will cross live shortly to the

beginning of the public hearings into the inquiry into child sex abuse. glyn says, "i have to say i'm fed—up asa glyn says, "i have to say i'm fed—up as a disabled person being picked on by the government. they simply have no idea what they're doing to us. i can't help being disabled and i didn't ask to be like this, but to be targeted by the government is appalling. it makes me worry about any cuts which has an impact on me and makes my condition worse." theindependent inquiry into child sexual abuse in england and wales is holding its first public hearings today, more than two and a half years after it was set up by the government. it'll begin by examining the appalling mistreatment of british children many whom were orphans or from poor families, who were sent to australia in the years

after the second world war. the inquiry will be told that the scale of abuse they suffered was much wider than previously thought. organisers of this year's oscars say they're still trying to work out how the ceremony ended in chaos, after the wrong film was named best picture. the hollywood musical la la land was mistakenly revealed as the winner, but during the acceptance speeches it was discovered the award should have gone to moonlight, which is a drama about a gay black youth coming to terms with his sexuality. after the second world war. the firm that counts the votes, pricewaterhousecoopers, has apologised, saying there was a mix—up with the award envelopes. the nhs has mislaid more than half a million items of patients' confidential medical correspondence, including treatment plans the government is facing calls from conservative mps to scrap plans to limit access to a key disability benefit. it's thought changes to the rules on who qualifies for the personal independence payment could affect around 160,000 people. it comes as a key aide to theresa may said disability benefits reforms were needed to roll back the bizarre decisions of tribunals. that's a summary of the latest

news, join me for bbc newsroom live at 11 o'clock. here's jessica again now with the sports headlines. manchester united have picked up their first piece of silverware of the season by beating southampton to win the efl cup. managerjose mourinho has called on fans to camp outside zlatan ibrahimovic‘s house to ensure he stays another season at the club after the striker scored the winner in the 87th minute for a 3—2 victory at wembley. a third hat trick in nine games for tottenham striker harry kane helped spurs to a 4—0 win over stoke that moves them up to second in the premier league. and england head coach eddiejones has criticised italy for their tactics in yesterday's six nations match. england came back from 10—5 down, to win 36—15 at twickenham. a chaotic night at the oscars. this

was the moment faye dunaway and warren beatty made the wrong announcement when they were given the wrong envelope. applause. and the academy award... go on. la la land. i am sorry, no, there's a mistake. moonlight, you guys won best picture. this is not a joke. i'm afraid they read the wrong thing. this is not a joke. moonlight has won best picture. moonlight, best picture. applause and cheering. i am sorry. let's go live to la now and we can

talk to sandro monetti, a british showbizjournalist in hollywood. how did it happen? the inquest is beginning. the mother of all mix—ups. rain has been accepted of all mix—ups. rain has been a cce pted by of all mix—ups. rain has been accepted by pricewaterhousecoopers, who for 83 years have tabulated the results and prepared the envelopes. —— blame has been accepted. don't bet on getting another year, pwc! faye dunaway and warren beatty were handed the wrong envelope. there are duplicates backstage and they had been handed the envelope for best actress, which was emma stone, la la land. warren beatty seems to realise the mistake and faye dunaway looks over, sees la la land, calls it out, and she has disappeared and has not been seen since and she wouldn't comment at the after party. now there is a lot of finger—pointing. and whoever mixed up the envelopes,

i don't fancy their future employment chances! but it means he will never ever forget who won best picture at this year's oscars ceremony. some people can't even remember who won last year! and jordan horrowitz, the producer of la la land, who took charge of the whole thing, maybe he should produce the oscars next year because he seems to know what he is doing! he rescued it and handed it to moonlight. i thought i had seen it all covering hollywood but this was all covering hollywood but this was a first. what a total fiasco. the oscars are hugely enjoyable and now they are covered in huge embarrassment. what a mess but what a laugh! we will probably interrupted our conversation as we go to interrupted our conversation as we gotoa interrupted our conversation as we go to a live event here in the uk. why do you think warren beattyjust handed that envelope to faye dunaway instead of saying, hang on, this isn't right? and conferring with the host, jimmy kimmel? he knew there was an issue so why didn't he say something? they were celebrating the

50th anniversary of bonnie and clyde. they are still causing chaos 50 yea rs later clyde. they are still causing chaos 50 years later obviously. who knows? that is the big question. what was going on in warren beatty‘s mind? he is being destroyed on social media. faye dunaway was the one who read it out, not him, but he explained that he had that momentary pause... we have got to interrupted. thank you very much. we are pausing there to go live to the inquiry, the independent inquiry into child sex abuse, which is just independent inquiry into child sex abuse, which isjust about independent inquiry into child sex abuse, which is just about to independent inquiry into child sex abuse, which isjust about to begin. this is the chair. finishing next friday, the 10th of march, 2017. the case study into child migration programmes is a part of the

inquiry‘s wide investigation into institutional failures in connection with the abuse of children outside of the united kingdom. this is an important day for the work of the inquiry and for the core participants and witnesses taking pa rt participants and witnesses taking part in this case study. today marks not only the first day of this hearing on child migration programmes, but the opening of the first public hearing in which the inquiry will hear live and read evidence from complainants and their experiences of sexual abuse. as you all know, the task of the chair and panel of the inquiry is to examine the extent to which public and private institutions in england and wales have failed to protect children from sexual abuse in the past and for us to make meaningful recommendations to keep children safe today and in the future. the

definition and scope of this case study was published on the inquiry website in may 2016. to fulfil our task, the inquiry will hold two hearings in the child migration case study during 2017. this hearing, known as the part one hearing, will provide an introduction to the history of the child migration programmes and the institutions involved and the nature of the allegations of sexual abuse that have been made by former child migrants. the part two hearings will commence on the 10th ofjuly 2017 and will focus on whether institutions based in england and wales took sufficient care to protect children in the migration programmes and the response of those institutions to the alleged sexual abuse of child migrants. the

inquiry‘s broader programme of work was published in its december 2016 report. the two hearings in the child migration case study are part ofa child migration case study are part of a full timetable of substantive hearings and seminars and a number of investigations which will be held in 2017 and into 2018. as part of this case study, as in all investigations, the inquiry continues to receive and review very large volumes of evidence relating to sexual abuse and institutional responses to it. and you will hear more detail on the evidence shortly from counsel. to all the core participants and their legal teams, we thank you for the hard work you have done in preparing for this hearing. and for the ongoing work involved in this case study. to the former child migrants who will give

evidence before the inquiry during these hearings, and to those who have given written testimony, we are grateful for your courage in coming forward to be a witness. we are conscious of the great challenges that many of you have encountered as a result of your experiences as children. i want to ensure you of the high priority the inquiry places on case study and on hearing your experiences. we thank those of you who have travelled long distances in order to testify before us. i would now like to introduce the core participants and where appropriate their representatives as follows. counsel for the child migrants trust. counsel for the participant oliver cosgrove, mr imran khan. core

participant mr david hill. counsel for barnardos, mr stephen ford 0c. counsel for the sisters of nazareth, mr bilal croat. counsel for the catholic counsel, kate gathered 0c. counsel for the secretary of state for health, samantha lewthwaite 0c. good morning to everybody and welcome to this hearing. before we hear from counsel, a welcome to this hearing. before we hearfrom counsel, a couple of points on practical arrangements. we will sit each day from 10:30am except on the days we are hearing evidence by video link from the east coast of australia. then we will start early at 8am. those days are day six, the 7th of march, and day seven, the 8th of march. ordinarily,

we will take a 15 minute break at around 11:a5am. on days when we are sitting early, we may take an early break during the morning. we will break during the morning. we will breakfor break during the morning. we will break for lunch at one o'clock, returning at 2 o'clock. we intend to sit until around 4 o'clock each day. by sit until around 4 o'clock each day. by way of an agenda, we rely on the hearing timetable which sets out the order in which witnesses will be called. the hearing transcript is recorded simultaneously on screens throughout the room and will be published at the end of each date on the inquiry website. any directions arising from the day's hearing will also be published on the website. as you will hear in more detail from counsel, there are anonymity arrangements in place for witnesses. ciphering and reductions have also

been used in relation to the evidence in accordance with the inquiry‘s redaction protocol and restriction order, both of which are available on the website. if there is any inadvertent breach of a restriction order, i would ask that the simultaneous recording be stopped momentarily so that the issue can be addressed as appropriate. i now invite leading counsel to the inquiry in relation to the case study on child migration programmes henrietta hild qc to address the panel. please go ahead. thank you, chairand members thank you, chair and members of the panel. i appear to date with junior counsel of this case study, and paul davison are also working on this case study but are not present at the case today. chair, on opening the case today. chair, on opening the proceedings of the half of the inquiryi the proceedings of the half of the inquiry i would like to first of all

explain the scope and purpose of the case study, secondly provide an overview of the child migration schemes, thirdly summarise the evidence we anticipate he will hear during the case study, and finally remind everybody of some logistical issues in respect of the witnesses. turning first to the scope and purpose of this case study. this case study, as you have said, is pa rt case study, as you have said, is part of the inquiry‘s protection of children outside the uk investigation. that investigation seeks to explore the extent to which institutions and organisations based in england and wales have taken seriously their responsibilities to protect older outside of the united kingdom from sexual abuse. the inquiry has decided to divide that broad investigation into a number of narrow case studies, of which this case study on the child migration programmes is the first. in summary, you and the panel will hear that the child migration programmes were large—scale schemes in which thousands of children, many of them

vulnerable, poor, abandoned, illegitimate or in the care of the state, were systematically and permanently migrated to remote parts of the british empire by various institutions in england and wales and with the knowledge and approval of the british government. many allegations of sexual abuse have been made by former child migrants. first whether government departments, public authorities, private and or charitable institutions based in england and wales, took sufficient care to protect those children involved in child migration programmes. second, the extent to which those same bodies were aware or should have been aware of allegations of evidence or evidence of sexual abuse concerning those children. and whether appropriate steps were taken in response. and third, the adequacy of support and repar rations that have been offered to individuals who suffered sexual abuse relating to

their inclusion into child migration programmes. as you've indicated chair, the inquiry has recognised seven core participants, the child migrants trust, oliver cos grove and david hill, barnardo's, and the secretary of state for health. it is understood chair as you know that the secretary of state for health will represent the interests of other government departments such as the home office, the foreign and commonwealth office, and the department for education. as you've indicated chair the inquiry seeks to meet its terms of reference by conducting two public hearings in this case study. a part one hearing intended to provide an introduction to the child migration programmes and what previous inquiries have established about the incidents of sexual abuse of child migrants and to hear direct evidence from former child migrants of their experiences. and a part two hearing which will focus on the position of the

institutions involved, in particular, what steps they took to protect children, what they knew or should have known of the sexual abuse of child migrants, the adequacy of their responses and the issue of support and repar ration. todayis issue of support and repar ration. today is the first day of that part one hearing. the part two hearing about commence on 10th july one hearing. the part two hearing about commence on 10thjuly 2017. turning then to an overview of the child migration programmes. chair, the child migration case study relates to a lengthy episode in child welfare in england and wales. child migration programmes achieved a degree of public recognition in 2010 when the then prime minister, gordon brown, issued a formal apology to former child migrants. but there remains little public awareness of the full extept of these programmes, of how they were conducted and their effects on the children subjected to them and particularly of the allegations of sexual abuse related to them. it is

estimated that you will hear evidence that over 100,000 british children were sent abroad as subjects of the child migration programmes, mostly to canada, australia, new zealand, and what was then southern rhodesia, modern day zimbabwe. we anticipate that you will hear that most british child migrants, around 90,000 were sent to canada between 1869 and 192a. the focus of this case study is the post—war period. but it is recognised that child migration schemes that operated for a lengthy period before then. as to the period after 1945, we anticipated that you will hear from the experts that over 3,000 children were sent to australia, between 1947 and 1965, with a few thereafter until the early 19705. around 559 were sent to new zealand. 329 were september to one institution in canada, between 1935 and 1948 and 276 were sent to

southern owe decemberia between 1946 and 1956. chair, you'll hear evidence as to the ration nationals, you are likely to hear both british and colonial governments regarded the programmes as carrying the perceived benefits of reducing the cost to the state of maintaining destitute children. many of the organisations advanced a humanitarian rational, ie they were rescuing children from poor and unsuitable environments and providing them with new and better opportunities overseas. child migration assisted in populating the empire with white, anglo—saxon settlers. it is argued that it met religious concerns about safeguarding children's religious beliefs and it sought to ensure that a particular religious denomination was well represented among the imperial settlers. as to the funding for child migration, you'll hear

initially the sceles were funded by a combination of charitable donations and funding from local unions. however, the empire settle m e nt unions. however, the empire settlement act of 1922 and those that followed provided that partial public funding was available for any approved migration scheme, whether it was run by the government or by a volu nta ry it was run by the government or by a voluntary organisation. additional funding was provided by national and regional governments overseas. according to the available records, chair, children as young as two were migrated under these programmes. we anticipate that you will hear evidence that these children were put on board ships departing from england and wales, without being given any real understanding of where they were going, what they we re where they were going, what they were doing and why they were being isn't. many will say they were taken without the consent or the informed consent of their parents or guardians. many will say that they we re guardians. many will say that they were wrongly told that they were orphans. separated from their siblings, and deprived of basic details about their identities. making it much harder if not

impossible to reunite themselves with theirfamilies impossible to reunite themselves with their families in the future. in the receiving countries, most children were placed in institutions or infarm children were placed in institutions or in farm schools where they provide i had labour and domestic services or with families. in those institutions or schools, child migrants have given evidence that they were frequently subjected to extremely harsh conditions. hard labour, and physical abuse by those responsible for their welfare. in addition, there are allegation of widespread and systematic sexual abuse taking place in those institutions. or some of them. some former child migrants alleged they we re former child migrants alleged they were subjected to sexual abuse prior to their migration in homes in england and wales. there is some evidence that you will hear of child migrants being sexually abused during thejurpb which migrants being sexually abused during the jurpb which from england and wales. others described sexual abuse in work environments to which they were sent. and some have described sexual abuse in holiday placements from the institutions.

you're likely to hear chair very emotional accounts of the decades of pain their experiences have caused. in respect of the institutions involved, the uk government provided partial funding involved, the uk government provided partialfunding for involved, the uk government provided partial funding for child migration schemes, approved the residential institutions to receive child migrants and was responsible for consenting to the migration of children sent from local authority care. local authorities sent a relatively small proportion of children in their care overseas and had no regulatory role or oversight of the children sent by voluntary organisations. overseas organisations. overseas organisations had varying responsibilities for the guardianship, partial funding and monitoring of child migrants. it was volu nta ry monitoring of child migrants. it was voluntary organisations including religious bodies, who oversaw the selection and transportation of many child migrants from their own residential holes or directly from theirfamilies the residential holes or directly from their families the they sometimes worked with organisations to arrange migration. voluntary organisations

also often placed the children in residential homes overseas, that we re residential homes overseas, that were either part of the same organisation, or an affiliate of it organisation, or an affiliate of it or were part of the same religious denomination. given the scope of the case study, chair, the inquiry will not consider the role of overseas bodies in child migration in any detail. say to the extent the same is necessary to understand the roles, responsibilities and response of those institutions based in england and wales. in terms of the volu nta ry england and wales. in terms of the voluntary organisations involved, you will hear evidence from a selection of children, who were migrated overseas by the fairbridge society, the church of england children's society, cornwall society, the church of england child ren's society, cornwall county council, the sisters of nazareth, southwark catholic rescue society, the royal overseas league, the national children's home, father hudson society. it has not been possible to identify or call a witness who was migrated by every institution involved in the scheme, but he will hear you will hear from

the experts. we anticipate chair that the experts will apine that child migration schemes were never accepted practise of the day, but attracted criticism of their working methods as well as support. that there was increasing concern about there was increasing concern about the schemes from some parts of the uk government, in the light of the childcare standards set out in the curtis report of 1946 and that these concerns formed part of the reasons why child migration schemes ended. turning now briefly to the role of other inquiries and investigations. in1998, other inquiries and investigations. in 1998, the house of commons select committee on health investigated the issue of child migration. it found that the sexual abuse of child migrants in some institutions in australia was widespread and systematic and to quote the language of their report, exceptionally depraved. the responsibility of some of the receiving institutions for the sexual abuse of children and the

adequacy of repar rations to former child migrants are being investigated by the australian royal commission. the australian commission has carried out three case study investigations into institutions to which british child migrants were sent. it has found that at salvation army homes in queensland and new south wales it heard graphic and shocking accounts of how boys were treated. there was sex sexual abuse by officers or from employees and from other boys resident in the home from 1956 until the closure of the homes. the australian royal commission found at christian brothers institutions in australia, children were isolated, inadequately educated and sexually abused and with regards to st joseph's orphanage, there was cruel punishment of the children there. some children had various barriers

to reporting sexual abuse and some who did complain were not believed or were punished in. january, the northern ireland historical abuse inquiry which investigated children sent from institutions in northern ireland to australia, in the years after world war ii, found numerous failures in respect of the northern irish government and various institutions that sent children to australia. the scottish child abuse inquiry is also conducting an investigation into child migration. the united kingdom government has acknowledged that children in child migration programmes endured the harshest of the conditions, neglect and abuse, but made no specific mention of sexual abuse. to date no public inquiry into the united kingdom has under taken analysis of allegation of sexual abuse of child migrants and possible failings by institutions based in england and wales in relation to that abuse. previous reports and reviews on child migration only considered sexual abuse in a limited way. the present case study therefore, chair,

for the first time considers whether the various england and wales bodies took sufficient care to protect children who were child migrants from sexual abuse and whether after that abuse came to light there has been adequate response. there is an added urgency to this case given the age of the many of the former child migrants. a number of whom expressed a desire to assist the inquiry in its work. turning then chair to the evidence that you will hear in part one and part two. consistent with the scope of the part one hearing, it's the scope of the part one hearing, its intended that the quin qirry will hear evidence during this hearing from expert and factual witnesses about the history and context of the child migration programmes, as well as evidence from former child migrants themselves. we anticipate that the evidence will begin this afternoon with expert evidence on the child migration schemes from professor stephen and professor gordon lynch. they will

provide evidence as the motivations and development and funding of the schemes and in broad terms as to the criticisms of the schemes and the decline of the schemes. tomorrow, chairand for decline of the schemes. tomorrow, chair and for the remainder of the week, and for some of the days of next week, you'll hear evidence from a number of former child migrants including oliver kos grave and david hill who are core participants. this evidence is intended to give the inquiry... this is henrietta hill, qc, she is counsel for the inquiry talking about the decades of pain that some of those who were abused as children suffered. we're staying with the inquiry on bbc news and bbc two. it hears testimony from a range of witnesses from a diversity of sending and receiving institutions and who make a variety of allegations. it has not been possible to ensure female and male

victims. the focus of this case study is the period beginning in 1945 and ending in the present day. and during that period, the overwhelming majority of child migrants were isn't to australia with far smaller numbers sent to rhodesia and canada. the evidence is more limited, but the inquiry will hear some evidence about those three countries. this is the first time on which many of the former child migrants from whom you'll hear have given evidence in a public forum of the sexual abuse they experienced many years agoment we recognise that this is a hugely emotional and difficult time for them and i will say something about how the inquiry is supporting those giving evidence and the important role all these in the hearing room can play in assisting those witnesses. you will also hear during part one evidence from dr margaret humphreys who played a key role in bringing the child migrants issue to public attention and in lobbying for

recognition of the experiences of child migrants and for adequate support to be made available to them. she will give evidence about her work with former child migrants, the setting of the up child migrants trust and her understanding of the experience of child migrants, including sexual abuse, the secondary abuse and the work and the principles of the cmt. we anticipate that on the final day of the part one hearing, you'll hear further evidence from the experts on theissues further evidence from the experts on the issues of the structure and operation of the child migration schemes, the roles of central and local government in the voluntary organisations, and as to the organisational relationships in the schemes to the various countries in question. and provide an overview of the available evidence. turning them to the evidence in part tojust briefly. during the