Labour peer Lord Janner will not face child sex abuse charges because the severity of his dementia makes him unfit to stand trial, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said.
The abuse allegations relate to residents in Leicestershire children's homes between 1970 and the 1980s.
Police condemned the CPS decision as "wrong", and the Labour Party has suspended the 86-year-old peer.
In 1991 Lord Janner told Parliament he was innocent of abuse allegations.
A retired High Court judge will now review the CPS's handing of the case.
More than a dozen individuals made allegations to police relating to Lord Janner, the CPS said.
The "core allegation" was that as MP for Leicester West at the time, Lord Janner befriended the manager of a children's care home to allow him access to children so he could "perpetrate serious sexual offences on children," the CPS said.
Leicestershire Police interviewed more than 2,000 people throughout the course of their investigation, and a "comprehensive file of evidence" was submitted to the CPS.
In a statement Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders said there was enough evidence to charge him with:
- Fourteen indecent assaults on a male under 16 between 1969 and 1988
- Two indecent assaults between 1984 and 1988
- Four counts of buggery of a male under 16 between 1972 and 1987
- Two counts of buggery between 1977 and 1988
But "mistakes" made in decision making by the CPS in 1991 and 2007 and Leicestershire Police in 2002 meant he was never charged.
"It is a matter of deep regret that the decisions in relation to the previous investigations were as they were," she said.
"Victims of the alleged offences have been denied the opportunity of criminal proceedings in relation to the offences of which they have complained."
She spoke of "regret" but fell short of apologising.
Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls has said Labour "acted swiftly and decisively" to suspend Lord Janner from the party.
He said the allegations were "very serious" but understood the CPS's decision.
Leicestershire Police, which has been investigating abuse allegations against him, said it was "worried" about the impact of the decision.
The Assistant Chief Constable Roger Bannister said he believed the decision was "the wrong one" and it would do little to support and encourage victims of sexual abuse to come forward.
He said: "I am extremely worried about the impact the decision not to prosecute him will have on those people [who came forward].
"More widely I am worried about the message this decision sends out to others, both past and present, who have suffered and are suffering sexual abuse.
"We are exploring what possible legal avenues there may be to challenge this decision, and victims themselves have a right to review under a CPS procedure."
Explaining its decision, the CPS said there is no treatment for Lord Janner's condition and there is no current or future risk of offending.
His condition is "rapidly becoming more severe" and requires continuous care both day and night, her statement said.
"His evidence could not be relied upon in court and he could not have any meaningful engagement with the court process, and the court would find it impossible to proceed."
Ms Saunders said the decision will be "extremely disappointing to complainants" and has written to all of them.
Retired High Court Judge Sir Richard Henriques will conduct an independent review into the CPS's decision making and how it handled the case, she said.
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