A fine balance

But the very fact that a person of such standing and influence in so many areas was able to get away with so much for so long, while making the case exceptional, also holds up a mirror to British society and the reflection cast is not a pleasant one.

The way in which the complaints of women, children and young people were ignored, dismissed and covered up, for the best part of half-a-century, is deeply shocking and a clear indication that Keir Starmer, Director of Public Prosecutions, is right to start a programme of reforms of the way sex-abuse cases are investigated and prosecuted.

Of course, the very nature of sex abuse means that it is often the word of one person, frequently a child, against another and children are as prone to lying as anyone else. So the new regime cannot be one of implicitly believing all accusations.

But equally, the present situation cannot be allowed to continue, a situation in which police and other official bodies too often believe implicitly in the word of a respected adult, dismissing the complaints of the alleged abused and making no effort to help them to overcome fear and embarrassment so that a case can be taken forward, even when it is known that other alleged victims have similar stories.

Mr Starmer has a delicate balance to strike, but the present situation, in which the voice of the abuser is so often louder than that of the abused, cannot be allowed to continue.