Donal MacIntyre's Statement: The launch of the Malcolm Rowley Trust web-site

There are thousands of people like Malcolm in care establishments the length and breadth of Britain. The Malcolm Rowley Trust web-site is being launched today to help the parents of those in care. Brenda Rowley, a brave and courageous woman, fought against institutional inaction, indifference and arrogance to seek justice for Malcolm.

In the course of this fight she has been insulted, disregarded and treated as if her views did not count and as if her son were a second class citizen deserving of nothing more than second class treatment. Her crime is that she was a mother, a mother who cared and loved her child.

Society's crime is that it ignored the plight of Malcolm and refused to listen to his mother. Society, the media, the politicians, the social services and the police continue to pay lip service to the concerns of those with learning difficulties. We are guilty, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, of neglecting the most vulnerable group in our society, the one group that can't speak up for themselves.

'I am saddened and distressed that abuse and neglect in care establishments continues at an unacceptable level. I am angry that despite devastating reports of physical and psychological abuse in care institutions in both the state and private sector, no one politician or Government has been committed to drawing a line under this horrific catalogue of crime, maltreatment and neglect.'

The most vulnerable sector of our society has been sold short, sidelined and disregarded because they have no clout, no voting power and are not considered reliable witnesses by the criminal justice system. It takes people like Brenda Rowley, shouting and pleading for change and justice and charities like; MENCAP, Action for Justice, the British Association for Learning Disabilities and the National Autistic Society, despite struggling with finance, to get the message across that we are all created equally and we must be treated as so.

It is time that the Government and the opposition parties commit themselves to change, to a revolution in care. A revolution in training and financial support for a sector that is in danger of putting profit before care and refusing to accept responsibility. Why is it that we have zero tolerance for parking offences, for begging, for speeding offences, they may all have their merit, but what about zero tolerance for physical abuse? For sexual abuse and neglect in the care homes of this country?

The launch of this web-site today introduces a forum for parents and loved ones to share experiences and advice. A positive step to draw an end to the veil of secrecy that shrouds abuse in this county. No more shall we accept phrases like `unfortunate accident` as an explanation of neglect and as an acceptable reason for Malcolm's tragic death.

Brenda Rowley has drawn attention to the care sector in the way the Lawrence family have highlighted issues of policing. Please join her in calling for zero tolerance of neglect, inhumanity and abuse against the most vulnerable groups in our society, those in care.