Social landlords must be ‘held to account’ for safety of homes, prime minister says
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to make sure social landlords are “held to account” for the safety of the homes they provide, in a statement following the publication of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s second and final report.
The prime minister apologised to the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire in a statement to parliament today and announced a raft of new measures in response to the report, including taking action to prevent companies involved from being awarded government contracts.
“We will ensure the tenants and their leaseholders can never again be ignored, and that social landlords are held to account for the decency and safety of their homes,” Sir Keir said.
The report concluded that Grenfell’s social housing provider, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation, was responsible for “chronic and systemic failings” in fire safety management, as well as a “toxic” relationship with the tower’s residents, who came to regard it as an “uncaring and bullying overlord that belittled and marginalised them”.
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KCTMO responsible for ‘chronic and systemic’ safety failings before Grenfell fire, inquiry concludesThe prime minister also announced the government would write to “all companies found by the inquiry to be part of these horrific failings as the first step to stopping them being awarded government contracts”.
The report concluded that “systematic dishonesty” by product manufacturers was a “very significant reason” why Grenfell Tower was clad in such dangerous materials.
Sir Keir said the government will take the “necessary steps” to speed up building safety works.
“We will be willing to force freeholders to assess their buildings and enter remediation schemes within set timetables, with a legal requirement to force action, if that is what it takes,” Sir Keir said.
“We will also reform the construction products industry that makes this fatal cladding, so homes are made of safe materials, and those who compromise that safety will face the consequences,” he said.
The inquiry report, published today, sets out the failures of the authorities and companies involved that led to the deaths of 72 people.
“Today is a long-awaited day of truth. It must now lead to a day of justice, justice for the victims and the families of Grenfell, but also a moment to reflect on the state of social justice in this country, and a chance for this government of service to turn the page,” Sir Keir said.
“This tragedy poses fundamental questions about the kind of country we are, a country where the voices of working-class people and those of people of colour have been repeatedly ignored and dismissed, a country where tenants of a social housing block in one of the richest parts of the land are treated like second-class citizens,” he added.
The report examined 30 years of missed warnings of an impending cladding disaster, and concluded that a “poorly run”, “complacent” and “defensive” government department “failed to act on what it knew” about dangerous cladding.
It said the government was “well aware” of the risk by 2016, but allowed its ministers’ enthusiasm for deregulation to “dominate [its] thinking to such an extent” that matters impacting life safety were “ignored, delayed or disregarded”.
The prime minister began his statement to parliament with an apology “on behalf of the British state to each and every one of you, and indeed, to all of the families affected by this tragedy”.
“It should never have happened. The country failed to discharge its most fundamental duty, to protect you and your loved ones, the people that we are here to serve, and I am deeply sorry,” he said.
“We will deliver a generational shift in the safety and quality of housing for everyone in this country.”
Ali Akbor, a panel member of the inquiry, said in a statement earlier today that those with responsibility for building safety should “read the report, reflect on it and treat Grenfell as a touchstone” in future.
“I consider myself as someone responsible for building safety, and that is exactly what I will do and what I’ll demand of this government,” Sir Keir said in response.
The prime minister added the need for caution in what is said, to avoid prejudicing future prosecutions.
“The greatest injustice of all would be for the victims and all those affected not to get the justice that they deserve,” he said.
Sir Keir said there will be a debate in the House of Commons to enable questions to be asked. The government will respond to the report’s recommendations in six months, with further steps for remediation set out in the autumn.
The landmark report stopped short of making recommendations covering other social housing providers, saying reforms in the recent Social Housing (Regulation) Act were sufficient to deliver change.
On Monday, Rushanara Ali, the building safety minister, confirmed the government was planning to introduce personal emergency evacuation plans for disabled residents, five years after they were recommended by the first Grenfell Tower Inquiry report.
In the wake of a fire at a block of flats in Dagenham in east London last week, Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister and housing secretary, said speeding up remediation work and making sure residents were safe while the work was undertaken was “absolutely critical”.
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Social landlords must be ‘held to account’ for safety of homes, prime minister says
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to make sure social landlords are “held to account” for the safety of the homes they provide, in a statement following the publication of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s second and final report
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