FIONA Woolf is facing down calls to stand aside as chairwoman of the UK Government's historic child abuse inquiry after claims she was an Establishment figure with a "close association" to Lord Brittan, Home Secretary at the time of abuse claims in the 1980s.
Edinburgh-born Ms Woolf, who describes herself as a "global Scot", insisted the former Conservative Cabinet Minister - who has flatly denied failing to act on a dossier of abuse allegations 30 years ago - was just "one of thousands" of people she knew in London.
The 686th Lord Mayor of London was giving evidence to the Commons Home Affairs Committee after disclosing details of her contacts with the Tory peer and his wife, who live on the same street as her in the UK capital.
Ms Woolf, it emerged, has entertained Lord and Lady Brittan at dinner parties on three occasions since 2008 and dined at their house twice. She also met the peer's wife for coffee, sat on a prize-giving panel with her, and sponsored her £50 for a fun-run.
But the 66-year-old corporate lawyer insisted there was nothing in the encounters to stop her chairing the wide-ranging probe ordered by Home Secretary Theresa May.
She said she had "gone the extra distance" to declare every possible issue in order to reassure victims following how her predecessor in the role Baroness Butler-Sloss was forced to stand down. The retired judge had faced intense criticism from victims' groups as an Establishment figure whose brother, the late Sir Michael Havers, was Attorney General during the 1980s.
But Ms Woolf appeared unwilling to say Lord and Lady Brittan were not friends and could not remember whether they were on her 3000-strong Christmas card list last year.
She insisted: "I am determined that this inquiry is going to relentlessly uncover the truth for the victims."
But Labour's Paul Flynn, referring to Lady Butler-Sloss, told her: "You seem to be an Establishment figure as well. Shouldn't you resign in the interest of the report being accepted?" he added.
In tetchy exchanges with MPs, Ms Woolf replied: "I am not a member of the Establishment. I have never been a member of any of the institutions apart from the City of London Corporation."
Earlier in a Commons statement, Ms May reiterated her backing for Ms Woolf, saying she believed the inquiry panel - which will also include Rotherham sex abuse report author Professor Alexis Jay - would "carry out their duties to the highest standards".
But Labour MP Simon Danczuk, who has led the campaign for an inquiry, said Ms Woolf and Lord Brittan were "clearly good friends" and she should stand down as the inquiry chairwoman.
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