Senior police officers fear government pressure to reinvestigate closed historic gang grooming cases could make it harder to catch those who target children today.

The government announced Thursday more scrutiny of past cases and that victims whose cases did not end with prosecution would be given new appeal rights to reopen investigations.

Police figures show only a small proportion of child sexual abuse charges (0.6 per cent) relate to grooming and abuse by male groups or gangs.

Multiple senior police sources told the Guardian they were concerned teams that combat sexual violence against women and children could be diverted.

One said it was "subliminal", while another said the government was reacting to a "right-wing driven political cause". Another person said that while the government had promised more money, it was only a fraction of what was needed.

British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced the decision under pressure from figures including social media tycoon Elon Musk, and the move was echoed by the British right.

Police and councils have been criticized for their handling of a series of cases involving collective child grooming. The high-profile cases involved attackers with Pakistani background.

But charities and other experts say the cases represent a small proportion of attacks and have grabbed headlines amid claims that political correctness leaves children defenseless against predators.

Police have beefed up public protection teams as research shows levels of sexual assaults on children and violence against women are higher than previously thought and too few offenders are being brought to justice.

A senior police officer said: "Most abuse occurs in the family environment. There is a particular type of crime (gang grooming) that occurs in many towns... (but) if you put your resources anywhere it is in the family environment.

"There is a lack of experienced investigators. The government's response to this right-wing driven political cause falls on policing and puts further strain on scarce resources."

Another senior source said: “There is a risk of a knee-jerk move into a particular area, especially if past cases supersede cases from last weekend.

"After Oldham, Rotherham, Telford, Oxford, people realize the ball has dropped in the past. It's much better now."

In making the announcement, Cooper cited the latest figures on child sexual abuse: "Of the 115,000 child sexual abuse offenses recorded by police in 2023, approximately 4000 involved more than one offender.

"Of these, they identified approximately 1,100 involving abuse within the family and more than 300 involving abuse within institutions. They identified 717 cases of child sexual exploitation associated with groups or gangs."

Police said there are currently 127 investigations underway across England and Wales into groups or gangs of men suspected of grooming and attacking children. Of those, 58 were investigated against suspects who were Pakistani or Asian.

A senior source said of the figure: "It pales in comparison to the referrals we get from our internet service providers on a weekly basis."

Richard Fewkes, director of the police's Child Sexual Exploitation Task Force, said: "These are complex investigations into group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation. They involve perpetrators of many races. We have not investigated them. Make a complete classification.

"Of the 127 investigations, 58 involved only Asian or Pakistani perpetrators. We are unable to provide a more detailed breakdown.

"Child sexual abuse and exploitation is one of the most complex areas of crime to investigate for a number of reasons. Research shows that it takes an average of 22 years for victims to report what happened to them, for a number of reasons, mainly violence "The abuse continues to have repercussions long after it ends."