British PM tries to quell public anger after deadly London fire
May pledges support for victims; Queen: Britain somber but steadfast
LONDON: British Prime Minister Theresa May’s government sought on Saturday to quell anger over a deadly tower block fire by pledging to support the victims of the blaze after protesters jeered her when she met victims and local residents of the disaster in her 10 Downing Street office on Saturday.
May was rushed away from a meeting with residents on Friday under heavy police guard as protesters shouted “Shame on you” and hundreds stormed a local town hall calling for justice.
After a botched snap election that lost her party its majority in Parliament, May is facing criticism for her response to the blaze which engulfed the 24-story apartment block of social housing on Wednesday, killing at least 30 people.
Residents of the destroyed tower said May was far too slow to visit the stricken community that the building had been unsafe and that officials have failed to give enough information and support to those who have lost relatives and their homes.
Asked repeatedly whether she had misread the public mood, May did not answer directly but said the focus was on providing support to the victims.
“What I’m now absolutely focused on is ensuring that we get that support on the ground,” May said in a BBC Newsnight interview.
“Government is making money available, we’re ensuring that we’re going to get to the bottom of what’s happened, we will ensure that people are rehoused. But we need to make sure that that actually happens.”
May on Saturday was due to chair a meeting on the government’s response to the fire. The death toll is expected to rise, as at least 60 people remain unaccounted for.
Alongside both police and fire investigations into the blaze, she has promised to set up a public inquiry.
She also pledged €5 million ($6.39 million) of support, housing guarantees and help with access to bank accounts and cash. Those who lost their homes will be rehoused within three weeks, she said.
One of her closest allies, Damian Green, defended May on Saturday, adding that a team would go to the area to answer questions from residents.
“The prime minister is distraught about what has happened,” said Green, who was appointed May’s deputy in the wake of the general election.
“We’re all desperately sad, we’re all angry, but of course none of us as angry as those who were directly affected. I absolutely get why they’re angry,” Green said.
Meanwhile the British policeman killed while defending Parliament during a terror attack was on Saturday honored by Queen Elizabeth II, alongside Paul McCartney, J. K. Rowling and Hollywood icon Olivia de Havilland.
Keith Palmer, 48, who was stabbed to death by Khalid Masood following his rampage on Westminster Bridge on March 22, received a posthumous George Medal for bravery in the monarch’s annual birthday honors list.
“Keith acted that day with no thought for his own safety... He paid the ultimate price for his selfless actions,” said London police chief Cressida Dick.
Among the other recipients of honors were singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran; a pensioner who tried to save murdered lawmaker Jo Cox; and the last surviving crew member of the World War II Dambuster raids.
Beatles star McCartney and “Harry Potter” author Rowling were made Companions of Honor (CH), an award for making a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine, or government. The rare order has a maximum of 65 members. McCartney, who turns 75 on Sunday, called the award “colossal” and a “huge honor.”
CHs were also awarded to designer and restauranteur Terence Conran; conductor Mark Elder, cookery writer Delia Smith, Beryl Grey — the first English ballerina to guest with the Kirov and Bolshoi ballets — and John Sulston, who won the 2002 Nobel Medicine Prize for his gene research.
While the blaze has prompted an outpouring of generosity, with many people donating provisions and clothes, it has also unleashed rage at the authorities as the charred tower was cast as a deadly symbol of a deeply divided society.
Angry protesters chanting “We want justice” stormed their way into the Kensington and Chelsea town hall on Friday.
After a turbulent three months, which has seen Britain scarred by three deadly militant attacks and now the tower blaze, Queen Elizabeth said the mood was deeply somber but that the British people were resolute in the face of adversity.
“It is difficult to escape a very somber national mood,” Elizabeth said in a message on her official birthday. “The country has witnessed a succession of terrible tragedies.”