Accusations of child sexual abuse against some prominent figures of Britain’s
recent past have proved true. Allegations of similar wrongdoing by
others, dating back decades, surface regularly now in the hothouse
British press, as does talk of cover-ups by some of the nation’s most
powerful institutions.
Yet, none of those disclosures, disturbing as they were, had nearly the impact of reports this week that a former prime minister, Edward Heath, had been accused of molesting children.