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Theresa May: Charities that fail to protect people they work with from sexual abuse won't get foreign aid

Theresa May - REX/Shutterstock
Theresa May - REX/Shutterstock

Charities need to show that the people they work with are protected from sexual abuse if they want to receive more Government funding in future.

The Prime Minister described the allegations of sexual misconduct by senior Oxfam staff in Haiti as "horrific" and said that the charity had fallen "far below the standards we expect".

Highlighting claims that witnesses had been physically intimidated by those accused of sexual misconduct, she said: "This is absolutely horrific. This is exactly the problem that we see which means that all too often people don't feel able to come forward to report what has happened to them, the behaviour that they've been on the receiving end of."

Read more | Oxfam scandal
Read more | Oxfam scandal

The Prime Minister also highlighted the case of Brendan Cox, the husband of the late Jo Cox who has admitted that he caused women "hurt and offence" while working at Save the Children.

During a visit to a sixth form in Derbyshire, Mrs May said: "I think what is important from a Government point-of-view in dealing with these charities is we are demanding that these charities come forward in very short order and show us what their safeguarding, their protection arrangements are.

"We will not work with anybody who does not meet the high standards that we set and we believe are important."

Oxfam has been told it will not receive new Foreign Aid funding from the Government amid scathing criticism of its handling of the Haiti sex scandal and the charity's leadership.

Penny Mordaunt, the International Development Secretary, said that the charity had "a long way to go" to regain public trust as she revealed it had agreed not to bid for new funding.

oxfam
oxfam

Ms Mordaunt said that staff and volunteers had been "poorly served by Oxfam's leadership" in a move that will increase pressure on Mark Goldring, the charity's chief executive.

It represents a significant blow for Oxfam, which last year received more than £30million from the Government.

The Telegraph understands that Ms Mordaunt was "unimpressed" by the charity's attempts to reassure her and that it could be months before it receives government aid funding again.