The failure to tackle the growing practice of female genital mutiliation is a 'national scandal', according to a committee of MPs led by Leicester's Keith Vaz. The report says an estimated 65,000 girls under 13 are at risk of FGM.
In a highly critical report MPs have condemned what they say is the scandalous failure to protect girls in the East Midlands from becoming victims of female genital mutilation.
The estimate is that many thousands are affected by the practice which has been illegal in this country since 1985.
The Leicester MP and Chair of the Home Affairs Committee Keith Vaz has called for a national plan of action. He says FGM is a severe form of child abuse which can never be dismissed as "cultural - it's criminal". Our Political Correspondent Alison Mackenzie reports.
West Midlands Weather: Windy on Sunday with showers and sunny spells
East Midlands Weather: Heavy rain over Derbyshire hills, drier and brighter elsewhere
The city’s spike in coronavirus cases has sparked a report that it may be the first UK location to be subjected to a district lockdown.