A government minister broke down in tears on live television after hearing a 15-year-old rape victim describe the decision to spare her attackers from jail as feeling like “a rock straight in my face” — as the Attorney General faces mounting pressure to refer the sentences to the Court of Appeal.
The girl, one of two teenagers raped by a group of boys in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, gave a harrowing interview on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme in which she questioned why she had put herself through the ordeal of a trial only to see her attackers walk free. “What was the point in putting me through that just to say that it’s fine?” she asked. “It took me six months to say something and essentially the reason I said it was because I was losing it, I was spiralling, I needed help but I didn’t know how to get it, so I spoke up.”
The sentencing at Southampton Crown Court last week sparked widespread outrage after Judge Nicholas Rowland handed the boys — two aged 15 and one aged 14, all from the traveller community — youth rehabilitation orders rather than custodial sentences. In his remarks, the judge said he had to “avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily” and suggested that “peer pressure played a large part in what went on,” prompting fury from victims, campaigners and politicians alike.
The court had heard how the first attack took place on 26 November 2024, when two boys raped the 15-year-old girl while a third watched, filming the incident on a phone. The footage was subsequently shared online, leading to a torrent of abuse directed at the victim. “I’d get no caller IDs, I’d get people calling me saying ‘you had a threesome,'” she told the BBC. “They said I was disgusting, that I should keep to myself, they said I was a wh**e, I was a sl*g. I just wanted to die.” A second attack took place on 17 January 2025, when a 14-year-old girl was raped by three boys in a field near Fordingbridge recreation ground, with that assault also filmed.
The two 15-year-olds were each handed three-year youth rehabilitation orders with 180 days of intensive supervision and surveillance. The court heard one had been diagnosed with ADHD and long-standing anxiety, and the other had an IQ in the bottom one per cent of his peers and had also been diagnosed with ADHD. The 14-year-old received an 18-month rehabilitation order.
Following the interview, BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg turned to Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones, who visibly struggled to contain his emotions on air. “As a minister, what I can’t do is get ahead of the Attorney General’s decision, but as a parent and as a member of the public, you can imagine what my personal view is on the situation,” he said, his eyes welling up. “Those girls deserve justice, as do their families — but also for other girls that are put in that position. Quite frankly, other boys need to know that they can’t behave in that way and get away with it.”
Kuenssberg observed directly that he had found the interview difficult to hear as a father. “It was very hard to watch because no parent wants their daughter to be in those circumstances and you don’t want a society in which girls are growing up in those circumstances,” he replied, visibly holding back tears.
Jones confirmed that Attorney General Lord Hermer had 28 days to decide whether to refer the sentences to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, adding that a decision would come “quicker than that.” A Government spokesman confirmed the Attorney General’s office had received “multiple” requests for a review.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer broke his silence on Sunday, writing on X: “This is a harrowing and brave testimony. The girls at the heart of this case have shown extraordinary bravery and strength in heinous circumstances. This is an appalling case and it is right that law officers are urgently reviewing the sentences.”
The victim’s mother made a direct appeal to the Prime Minister during the interview. “If it was your daughter, your niece, your son, your nephew, your family member, would you be happy? Because we’re not happy and I don’t think any other member of the public will be happy too. So you’re in a position of power to help, so please help.” Her partner said he had felt “physically sick” in the courtroom. “It seems to me like the victims are the ones that are suffering, and the perpetrators are the ones that have seemingly got away scot-free,” he said. “The judge’s message was: ‘It’s OK, you can do it, I’ll just give you a slap on the wrist.'”
Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones said the sentences were “far too lenient” and offered to support the families in pursuing an appeal. “I’m deeply concerned these boys felt they could carry out such terrifying acts and share them online and not go to prison,” she said, calling for greater education around sexual violence and misogynistic attitudes.
Jones also flagged wider concerns about the role of social media and online pornography in shaping young men’s behaviour — a point echoed by the minister, who said: “We do know that there are impacts from social media and online pornography and the way in which some boys are interacting with this content and thinking it’s OK to behave in certain ways. There are too many incidents of this.”
Lord Hermer will now consider whether to send the case back to court, where judges could increase the sentences and impose custodial terms.
