Andrew Bridgen says criticism of force’s handling of abuse claims could be seen as attempt to derail and silence investigation

Police examining claims that Sir Edward Heath sexually abused children have been the victim of a “chilling” campaign to silence them, a Conservative MP has said on the eve of the conclusion of a two-year investigation into the former prime minister.



The Wiltshire police report on the allegations of abuse is expected to say there were the initial grounds to suspect Heath and that would have merited interviewing him under criminal caution had he still been alive.

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Andrew Bridgen, the MP for North-West Leicestershire, who has been briefed on the findings, said he supported the work of Wiltshire police and its chief constable Mike Veale. “The unprecedented negative and constant barrage on Veale and his investigative team, I find it quite chilling. Many will think it is an attempt to derail, silence and discredit the investigation before the report has been delivered,” he said.

“Having spoken to Chief Constable Veale, if anything they, have erred on the side of being fair to Edward Heath throughout. They have learned from previous investigations and I believe the report will stand up to scrutiny.”

Heath was prime minister between 1970 and 1974 and led the Conservative party from 1965, until he was ousted by Margaret Thatcher in 1975. He never married and at times his private life was the subject of lurid speculation. He died in 2005.

The Wiltshire police investigation began in 2015 and is estimated to have cost £1.2m. The report is expected to provoke a furious row and supporters of Heath believe it will unfairly tarnish his reputation.

The report is expected to acknowledge the difficulty in assessing the validity of historical abuse claims. The allegations in the Heath case date back decades, and the report will not reach a conclusion on whether Heath was guilty of any offences.

Wiltshire police’s Operation Conifer received more than 30 complaints naming Heath, and several were assessed by detectives as credible. Heath’s supporters say police were wrong to launch their investigation with a televised appeal outside his former home in August 2015 in which they invited any “victims” to come forward.

Heath’s godson, Lincoln Seligman, said: “What we’re expecting is that it will contain more innuendo than facts. After spending all this time and money, one would be surprised if they did not do everything they can do to give the impression of guilt. They have to have found something that can be presented as dirt. They have been unfair to him. If he had been alive, he would have had a chance to confront all that.”

But Bridgen praised the Wiltshire chief constable. “He is a public servant of high integrity, conducting a high-profile and difficult investigation, being hammered in the press with no ability to defend himself,” he said.

Bridgen has an interest in tackling child abuse. Asked whether it had briefed Bridgen on its inquiry, Wiltshire police said: “Throughout this investigation, a number of different stakeholders have been briefed on a number of different issues. These briefings have been carried out under the strictest of confidence. We will not be commenting further on this matter.”

The force added: “The Operation Conifer summary closure report will be published on Thursday 5 October 2017. As per our position throughout this investigation, we will not be commenting on any operational detail until such time we publish our report.”

Sensitive detail has been removed from the published version of the report, and the full version will be submitted to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, which is likely to consider it as part of an investigation into whether powerful people were protected from proper criminal investigation.