Never judge by race

The aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire disaster has been bitter and acrimonious. Unfortunately, if inevitably, conspiracy theories and unfounded allegations have flourished, often whipped up by senior Labour politicians. John Mcdonnell, the shadow chancellor, has even spoken of “murder” committed by politicians who failed to take heed of past warnings about the safety of the building.

Now David Lammy, the Labour MP for Tottenham, has openly questioned the suitability of the High Court judge Sir Martin Moore-bick to head the inquiry into the tragedy. Questions have been raised over past judicial decisions reached by Sir Martin. But Mr Lammy’s main objection appears to be the fact that the judge is male, white and middle class. Interviewed on Sky News the MP asked whether Sir Martin could be impartial if he had no experience of the sort of life that the victims led. “Whose side will he be on?” Mr Lammy asked.

We hope the answer to that is no one’s side. While criminal charges may well be brought against people and businesses involved in the construction and maintenance of the tower, this is not a trial, but an inquiry to establish precisely what happened. The danger with Mr Lammy’s remarks is that they undermine the judge before he has even begun and reinforce the idea that there is a cover-up. The suggestion that the true death toll has been suppressed, for instance, has gained credibility because of the injudicious comments of MPS who should know better. Just as Mr Lammy would rightly object to suggestions that he could not do his job because of the colour of his skin, so a white judge is entitled to be measured by his expertise and not dismissed because of his race or class.