Grenfell council shuts down public meeting
THE leader of Kensington and Chelsea council was facing renewed calls to resign last night after he scrapped a public meeting on the Grenfell Tower disaster because journalists were present.
Nicholas Paget-brown took the astonishing step of dissolving the meeting when he realised newspaper reporters were in the council chamber.
The move was condemned as “anti-democratic”, while Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, called it “disgusting”.
Earlier in the day, the council announced the cabinet meeting would be held behind closed doors because of a claim of a risk of violence to councillors and staff.
However, a High Court order was obtained by newspapers giving the media the right to attend the cabinet session. Reporters were finally let into the meeting after it began but when Mr Paget-brown, a Conservative, was made aware of their presence, he called it off.
Mr Paget-brown told councillors: “I’ve been advised that if there are others present we cannot have an open discussion.
“We can’t have an unprejudiced discussion in this room with a public inquiry that’s about to take place if journalists are recording and writing our comments.
“I’m told the press are here because of the result of legal intervention and that therefore means we cannot have the discussion that we intended to have because that would prejudice the public inquiry. That is the legal advice I have received and therefore have to declare the meeting closed.” The announcement led to chaotic, angry scenes. Mr Paget-brown was confronted by Robert Atkinson, an opposition councillor, who stood up to demand the cabinet’s resignation.
Before the meeting, the council posted on its website: “Please note this meeting will be held entirely in private session, pursuant to Standing Order 31.01, in the light of the risk of disruption (as witnessed on Friday 16 June) and consequent security and public safety concerns.”
The council had been stormed shortly after the fire by residents and others furious at the council’s slow response to the disaster.
Mr Farron said in reaction to the announcement: “It was a young MP called Margaret Thatcher who changed the law to allow the public to attend council meetings and it is utterly shameful that a Conservative council is trying to stop democracy. This is frankly disgusting.”
Downing Street said it wanted all parties involved in the aftermath of the fire “to be as open and transparent as possible, both with residents and the wider public, to ensure full confidence in the response effort”.
A spokeswoman said: “We would encourage everyone involved to respect this wherever possible.”
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said: “One of the great things about our country is we believe in open democracy. Kensington and Chelsea needs to reflect on the way it’s behaved since Grenfell.”
In a statement released after the cabinet meeting was dissolved, Mr Paget-brown said: “We are under sustained media criticism
for a slow reaction to the fire, non-visibility and for failing to invest in North Kensington. Many of these criticisms need to be challenged and over time they will be, but I can think of nothing more demeaning to the memory of those lost and missing in the fire than seeking the resolution of political scores.”
The row came on a dramatic day as the retired judge leading the Grenfell Tower inquiry angered residents within hours of his appointment yesterday, admitting he was “doubtful” his investigation would satisfy them.
Sir Martin Moore-bick admitted the inquiry would be “pretty well limited” in its scope. Sir Martin, 70, a former lord justice of appeal, also suggested it would not be quick, saying he hoped an interim report could be produced within a year. Theresa May said she expects one “as early as possible”.
Sir Martin refused to put a timescale on the inquiry, prompting concern it could go the way of Mrs May’s inquiry into child sexual abuse, which is now expected to cost more than £100million and will take at least six years.
Residents who met Sir Martin at a church close to Grenfell Tower told of their concerns, including his background as a commercial lawyer who had specialised in shipping and insurance law. Joe Delaney, 37, who worked with Grenfell Action Group, said: “He seems to want to keep the scope very narrow, to do with why the fire spread so quickly, while we are more looking at why was it started in the first place, why were residents ignored?” Oluwaseun Talabi, who fled Grenfell Tower with his partner and four-year-old daughter, said: “We need a criminal judge.”
Amanda Fernandez, who lost her 12-year-old cousin in the fire, said she had a “complete lack of confidence” in the inquiry. She also criticised Mrs May for failing to consult with residents before appointing Sir Martin.
Michael Mansfield QC, who met survivors of the fire, said it was “unbelievable lessons are not learned” from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, which is on its fourth chairman. He said that inquiry “did not consult with the families and the survivors”.
Sir Martin’s appointment was recommended by the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd.
Downing Street denied claims it had unease over the choice because Sir Martin had presided over a 2014 appeal court case in which he ruled in favour of Westminster city council in a dispute with a tenant facing homelessness after she refused to be rehoused 50 miles away near Milton Keynes. The ruling, condemned as “social cleansing of the poor on a mass scale”, was overturned by the Supreme Court.
The Telegraph can disclose that in a 2015 appeal court hearing, Sir Martin ruled in favour of Kensington and Chelsea council against Vida Poshteh, an Iranian asylum seeker who was refused accommodation after rejecting the offer of a two-bedroom flat because it reminded her of her prison cell in Iran.
The judge also addressed concerns that his ruling on the 2014 case would cause issues for the inquiry. Sir Martin said: “I was rather surprised to see myself described as controversial. The case is one of many that I have decided over my time as a judge. I have been a judge for over 20 years and, particularly in the Court of Appeal, one deals with an enormous range of work, much of which involves local government or central government.”
♦ The fireproof cladding initially intended for Grenfell was downgraded to save £293,000 as housing officials demanded “good costs” to satisfy a council boss, leaked emails reveal. Kensington and Chelsea tenant management organisation told consultants Artelia UK: “We need good costs for Cllr Feilding-mellen and the planner tomorrow at 8.45am!” The email offers three ways to reduce the cost of cladding, including using aluminium panels rather than non-combustible zinc.
A council spokesman told The Times: “Cllr Feilding-mellen and the cabinet were willing to approve significant and repeated increases in the overall budget based on the advice received from KCTMO, which was responsible not only for specifying and delivering the project but also for ensuring the building met the necessary and current building regulations.”