Tower disaster ‘failings’ probe

A PUBLIC inquiry into the Grenfell Tower disaster will examine alleged failings by the council and the Government’s response, it was announced yesterday.

It will be led by former Appeal Court judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick and convenes on September 14, exactly three months after the inferno.

Survivors had threatened to boycott it if it failed to consider Kensington Council’s actions before the blaze which killed at least 80 and left hundreds homeless. Central to the inquiry is the decision to fit flammable cladding on the outside and allegations that residents repeatedly warned the council a fire at the 24-storey block was a disaster waiting to happen.

It will also examine the multi-million refurbishment, the cause and spread of the fire and the adequacy of fire regulations in high-rise buildings nationwide.

The hearing, which will publish an initial report by Easter, will also consider the response of London Fire Brigade following criticism that victims were told to remain in their flats. It will run alongside a police investigation that may result in charges of corporate manslaughter.

Campaigners welcomed the decision to include the actions of the local authority in the scope of the public inquiry – but some said it should have gone further and included a review of Britain’s social housing policy.

Prime Minister Theresa May said a review of housing policy would be carried out by Housing Minister Alok Sharma, adding: ‘I am determined that the broader questions raised by this fire – including around social housing – are not left unanswered.’

But Kensington Labour MP Emma Dent Coad said the inquiry’s limited scope was a ‘betrayal’ of promises to survivors, adding: ‘We were told no stone would be left unturned.’ MAIL NEWSPAPERS CUSTOMER SERVICES: