Cladding crisis latest: Nearly 10,000 people evicted due to safety concerns since Grenfell
“The thing I remember is just people out on the street in pyjamas, crying, some with small children.
“I saw people wandering the corridors with their possessions in bin bags, with no idea where to go.”
These are the images which have stuck with Nathan and Josh, from the night they and their neighbours were forced to leave their homes.
They’re just the latest victims of the post-Grenfell building safety scandal.
In early October, three years after fire safety issues such as wooden cladding were uncovered at Skyline Chambers in Manchester, residents were suddenly handed “prohibition notice” letters from Greater Manchester Fire Service, telling them the risk was now “so serious” that they had to leave.
That made it illegal for anyone to live at Skyline until the building had been made safe – and families were temporarily scattered into hotels across the city.
But campaigners worry that what happened at Skyline Chambers is actually part of a growing trend.
Data by the Building Safety Register shows 38 buildings with an estimated population of 9,600 people living in them have been forcibly evacuated (decanted) since Grenfell for fire or structural issues.
Of these, 15 (nearly 40%) happened in 2023 alone, and BSR founder Matt Hodges-Long fears the numbers will only keep rising.
“It’s because regulatory authorities have reached the end of the rope, waiting for these buildings to be made safe.
“You’re making building owners go and look in more detail at the buildings, maybe taking the external walls off to expose the structure, and once you see something wrong you can’t unsee it.
“So that leads us down a path of evacuating buildings to put them right.
“And that’s why we’re going to see this acceleration of forced evacuations over the coming one, two, three years as this housing stock gets investigated more.”
Building Safety Register founder Matt Hodges-Long
‘That was my home’
If there are going to be more buildings evacuated, the residents at Skyline want to make sure there are more protections for residents.
When I visited the £15m block on Ludgate Hill I was struck by how much it looked like any other modern high-rise.
The lights were off, but through the windows you could see furniture, plants, and even a towel still hanging out to dry on a balcony; all left by people in a hurry.
There’s also no sign of any building work; despite it being promised that remediation would start in November.
Residents and leaseholders are furious about the delays, and the “patchy” amount of support being offered to them.
Nathan (L) and Josh are the latest victims of the cladding crisis
While Josh Morris and the 14 other leaseholders who own their own flats will be re-housed until the building is safe, renters like Nathan Jones only have until the new year to find somewhere new to live.
“I feel hurt more than anything that I found out they were going to make over a hundred people homeless two weeks after Christmas, after meetings where they promised to look after everybody,” Nathan tells me.
He fights back tears as he explains how, in the current housing climate, he can’t afford to rent in Manchester anymore:
“That was my home, it had been my home for eight years, I made a life there, and the rent stayed affordable.
“So now I’m faced with another dilemma. After 18 years living in Manchester, with the rents as they are now, I can’t afford it – so I’m having to look outside of the city centre now.
“My friends are here, my job is here, but I have to leave.”
Landlords are struggling too
Other tenants, I’m told, have similarly been forced to leave the city, with one man moving back in with his parents.
But the landlords who rent out their flats are also struggling.
With the termination of tenancies, they fear losing thousands of pounds in rent, while still paying mortgages, increased insurance costs, and service fees they’re still being asked to pay.
Paul Roberts has two flats in the building – he says the loss of rent will cost him £25,000 a year.
Landlord Paul Roberts
He’s desperately worried that some of his fellow landlords won’t survive financially, and angry that Wallace Estates, which owns the freehold of the building, hasn’t promised more support past January.
“It’s not going to be a very good Christmas for many of them,” he says.
Leaseholder-resident Josh thinks there should be rules in place to give everyone in this position proper support and compensation.
He says: “At the end of the day, it’s still someone’s home, and we should all be treated equally.”
He thinks it’s wrong that the government allows prohibition notices to be put in place, with seemingly little follow-through for what should happen next to the people who live there.
“It feels like they’re just making it up as they go along, and that’s causing massive, massive mental health problems for everyone involved.”
Company defends ‘immediate action’
Before the decant, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) instigated legal action around Skyline Chambers, and three other buildings in Manchester, to force Wallace Estates to begin remediation. The hearing will take place in March.
A spokesperson for Wallace Estates said it took “immediate action” to relocate all residents when fire safety concerns were discovered recently.
They added: “We are prioritising the remediation of Skyline so residents can return to their homes as soon as the building is safe.
“In the meantime, all owner-occupiers have been placed in alternative accommodation until Skyline is remediated, and Wallace has provided accommodation for tenants of Buy-To-Let investors for three months – giving landlords time to liaise with tenants they are responsible for.
“Neither leaseholders nor freeholders are responsible for the existence of fire safety defects at Skyline. The full extent of the negligence of building controllers overseeing the construction of the building has only recently become apparent, and the defects themselves are the result of decisions taken by the original developer.
“It is astonishing that, across the country, leaseholders and freeholders are having to deal with the failings of reckless developers, irresponsible product manufacturers and central and local government who oversaw a deficient safety regime.”
The number of buildings that have been evacuated since Grenfell, by year
A DLUHC spokesperson said: “Freeholders have a legal duty to ensure the safety of their residents. We have been clear they need to get on with the job of remediation because every day they delay is another day that people can’t get back into their homes.
“Residents and their safety are our utmost priority in any decant and we must ensure they feel supported and have somewhere safe and decent to live while their homes are made safe.”
UK
World Cup 2026 – who England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will play
Scotland and England now know who they will face in the group stage of the next summer’s world cup.
But the fates of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales won’t be determined until they compete in pre-tournament play-off matches in March.
England are in Group L along with Croatia, Panama and Ghana. Their first match will be against Croatia, who beat them in the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Pic: Reuters
Scotland’s first match will be against Haiti, in Group C.
Brazil and Morocco are the other Group C teams – both countries were also in the same opening group as Scotland in the 1998 World Cup in France.
Trump and Infantino at the World Cup draw
Wales have yet to find out if they will qualify as they must face a play-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cardiff, and then either Italy or Northern Ireland, if they are victorious.
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If they can overcome these play-off opponents then they will secure their place in Group B along with Canada, Qatar and Switzerland. But Northern Ireland will also be vying and hoping to guarantee their spot in the same group if they can beat Italy and then either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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‘Bring it on!’: Scotland fans react to World Cup draw
The Republic of Ireland also need to get through the play-offs first and are paired against the Czech Republic for their semi-final. Should Ireland win that match, they will need to beat either North Macedonia or Denmark to get to the finals where an opening group containing joint hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea awaits.
This was a World Cup draw like no other. Crafted less for the teams but for one man.
The choice of venue. The creation of a new trophy. The closing music act.
Donald Trump was lavished with the adulation he craves by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and feels others unfairly deny him.
Knowing how much being overlooked by the Nobel Committee hurt the US president, there was Mr Infantino with FIFA’s newly-created Peace Prize to hand over. And a medal for Mr Trump to wear.
“This is truly one of the great honours of my life,” he said. “And beyond awards, Gianni and I were discussing this. We saved millions and millions of lives.”
This was all on the stage in front of an audience who turned up to find out who they will be playing at the World Cup.
England handed an undaunting route past Croatia, Panama and Ghana. Scotland paired with newcomers Haiti before tricky reunions from their last men’s World Cup in 1998 against Brazil and Morocco.
Pic: Reuters
But the show before the draw could even begin – presided over by Rio Ferdinand – took almost as long as a football match, at 87 minutes after the noon kick-off was delayed.
There was a walk of self-promotion to complete – “I guess they have to wait” – before taking his seat in the Kennedy Center. Or the Trump Kennedy Center as the president takes to calling the venue picked 1.5 miles from the White House.
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England manager Thomas Tuchel reacts to draw
“It was falling apart,” he said, delaying the walk into the auditorium. “And now it’s, it’s pretty much back.”
Mr Infantino could only watch on, beaming, at his friend.
“We had a dead country,” Mr Trump went on, “and now we have the hottest country anywhere in the world”.
There was the awkwardness of being reminded, before receiving the peace accolade, about threats to launch military strikes on Venezuela to stop the drugs trade.
“I did settle eight wars, and we have a ninth coming,” he swatted away the question. “Which nobody’s ever done before. But I want to really save lives. I don’t need prizes.”
But FIFA knew how much he wanted more gold for the collection with the prize.
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What draw means for England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland
Donald Trump and FIFA president Gianni Infantino. Pic: Reuters
Pic: Reuters
And for all the mockery and disdain targeted at FIFA, how many sports would relish having the US president spend several hours attending a procedural event determining the placing of teams in groups for a tournament?
How many would dish out the same flattery to secure direct lines to the leader of the nation staging their championship?
Many have benefited from Mr Trump’s stardust and swagger being attached to this spectacle.
Even Port Vale’s most famous fan – Robbie Williams – secured a walk-on role, exceeding his profile this side of the Pond.
And the Village People are reaping the rewards of becoming the unlikeliest of Trump hype acts.
The festivities ended with eyes fixed back up to the presidential seating and the YMCA dance being performed.
This was an afternoon that dispelled any pretence that FIFA keeps a distance from politics. It was unapologetically political. But few speak out in the FIFA world as the redistributed wealth keeps rolling back in their direction.
It would be easy to forget this isn’t entirely America’s World Cup. They’re sharing hosting with Canada and Mexico.
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‘Bring it on!’: Scotland fans react to World Cup draw
And eventually the spotlight was ceded to their leaders – very briefly – as Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney drew out their countries’ names.
But it did live up to FIFA’s mantra that football can unite the world.
The neighbours were brought together here on a snowy day in Washington. And tensions – often stoked by Mr Trump with Canada and Mexico – thawed in the name of football.
Meghan Markle has “reached out” to her estranged father after reports he had his leg amputated, her spokesperson has said.
Thomas Markle, 81, reportedly had his leg amputated following surgery in the Philippines, where he moved to this year.
Meghan has been estranged from her father since around the time of her wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018.
Mr Markle, a retired television lighting director and director of photography, made headlines across the globe after he was caught staging paparazzi photographs in the days ahead of the ceremony.
A spokesperson for the Duchess of Sussex said: “I can confirm she has reached out to her father.”
Meghan is said to have previously tried to reach out to him in the past.
Mr Markle has never met his grandchildren Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
At the start of this year, Mr Markle told of how he dreamed of bringing his “whole family together” and wished his daughter “no ill-will”.
Mr Markle revealed that he didn’t “like some of the things” Meghan had done but would “always love her”.
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His interview with the Mail on Sunday came amid the duchess’ return to Instagram and the release of a trailer for her lifestyle show on Netflix.
Mr Markle said: “I’m not running away. I am going in search of a more positive life.
“Every day I see something about Meghan. This week it has been the new TV show.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex during a trip to Cape Town. Pic: Reuters
In his first interview after his daughter’s wedding, Mr Markle said he didn’t attend the big day because he was embarrassed about staging the photos.
“The truth is I couldn’t get over the fact that that had happened. All that stuff was working on me, I had a bit of a heart condition.
“This pushed me a little further to the part where I had heart palpitations. I had to drive at 2am to a hospital. They sent me to another little hospital and then they sent me to a bigger hospital and I had a heart attack.”
A day-and-a-half later he said he felt better and checked himself out against doctors’ wishes in a bid to make it to the wedding, but the heart palpitations returned when he got home, which at the time was in Mexico.
“At that time I started getting chest pains and I said I have to cancel because I didn’t take care of the heart problem before. I had a good friend take me back to a hospital across the border to the States where I was told that my condition was very bad and they had to operate, and I had heart surgery.”
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