Grenfell Tower: Landmark report finds government ignored warnings about fire risks of high-rise buildings
The government was “well aware” of the deadly risks posed by combustible cladding and insulation a year before the Grenfell Tower fire, but “failed to act on what it knew”, a landmark report has found.
The report also said “systemic dishonesty” from cladding and insulation companies and a “toxic” relationship between the tower’s residents and the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO), which was responsible for running services, were contributing factors.
More than seven years on from the fire that claimed 72 lives, Grenfell Inquiry chair Sir Martin Moore-Bick has published his final findings into how the building in west London came to be in such a deadly state.
Pic: PA
Sir Martin also concluded:
• Government officials were “complacent, defensive and dismissive” on fire safety, while cutting red tape was prioritised
• There was an “inappropriate relationship” between approved inspectors and those they were inspecting
• Grenfell residents who raised safety concerns were dismissed as “militant troublemakers”
Flames engulfed the 24-storey tower block in Latimer Road, west London, on 14 June 2017
The report details what it calls a “path to disaster” and “decades of failure”.
It asked: “How was it possible in 21st century London for a reinforced concrete building, itself structurally impervious to fire, to be turned into a death trap?”
“There is no simple answer to that question.”
Sir Martin’s report runs to nearly 1,700 pages, and encompasses years of work and the testimony of hundreds of witnesses.
It contains 58 recommendations to ensure a similar disaster never happens again.
Hundreds of firefighters tackled the blaze. Pic: PA
Crews tackled the fire in shifts – resting at the scene. Pic: AP
Complacency in government
The first phase of the inquiry’s report found in 2019 that combustible cladding was the primary cause of the rapid spread of the fire.
The inquiry has now concluded that the tragedy was the culmination of those in charge failing for decades to properly consider the risks of combustible materials on high-rise buildings, while ignoring the mounting evidence before them.
The building was covered in combustible products. Pic: Reuters
Read more:
The Grenfell children who survived the blaze
Grenfell victims likely to wait over a decade for justice
Successive governments missed opportunities to prevent the tragedy.
The deadly risks of combustible cladding panels and insulation had been identified as early as 1991, when a fire engulfed the Knowsley Heights tower block in Huyton, Merseyside.
The block had recently been covered in “rainscreen” cladding.
Six people were killed at Lakanal House in Camberwell, south London, in 2009 after a fire spread to combustible cladding.
“By 2016 the department [for communities and local government] was well aware of those risks, but failed to act on what it knew,” the report states.
It adds that by the time Grenfell Tower was being renovated in the 2010s, a “seriously defective” system was in place to regulate the construction and refurbishment of high-rise buildings.
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‘We want changes and justice’
Unsafe products kept on market and dangers ‘deliberately concealed’
The report condemns cladding and insulation firms involved in this work, saying they engaged in “deliberate and sustained strategies to manipulate the testing processes, misrepresent test data and mislead the market”.
It said that “systemic dishonesty” from the companies resulted in hazardous materials being applied to the block.
Arconic, the company that made cladding for Grenfell Tower, “deliberately concealed” the danger of the panels used on the tower, while Celotex, which supplied most of the insulation, similarly “embarked on a dishonest scheme to mislead customers”.
Kingspan knew its insulation product failed fire safety tests “disastrously” but continued to sell it to high-rise buildings, the report found.
The firms got away with this because the various bodies designed to oversee and certify their products repeatedly failed to monitor and supervise them.
Grenfell residents dismissed as ‘troublemakers’
There was also harsh criticism of the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO), which was responsible for running services at Grenfell Tower.
Residents who raised concerns about safety were dismissed as “militant troublemakers”, while there was “a toxic atmosphere” with the TMO “fuelled by mistrust of both sides”.
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Relations “were increasingly characterised by distrust, dislike, personal antagonism and anger” and “some, perhaps many, occupants of the tower regarded the TMO as an uncaring and bullying overlord that belittled and marginalised them”.
The TMO and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea were jointly responsible for managing fire safety at Grenfell Tower – but the years between 2009 and 2017 were marked by a “persistent indifference to fire safety”, the report said.
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‘I realised the burning building was my own home’
Next steps
The Counsel for the inquiry has accused parties involved in the disaster of a “merry-go-round of buck-passing” – largely blaming each other for the disaster.
The inquiry can’t make findings of civil and criminal liability.
Now its work is complete, the police investigation into the disaster will continue.
The UK Tonight With Sarah-Jane Mee will have a special programme on the Grenfell Tower report at 8pm on Sky News
Nick Read is to end his torrid tenure as chief executive of the Post Office as he prepares to give evidence to the inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal.
Sky News has learnt that Mr Read, who took over five years ago, has decided to resign from the government-owned company.
He initially stepped back temporarily from the post to focus on his evidence to the inquiry into the IT debacle that affected hundreds of sub-postmasters.
In a statement confirming his departure after Sky News reported that it was imminent, Mr Read said: “It has been a great privilege to work with colleagues and Postmasters during the past five years in what has been an extraordinarily challenging time for the business and for Postmasters.
“There remains much to be done for this great UK institution but the journey to reset the relationship with Postmasters is well underway and our work to support justice and redress for Postmasters will continue.”
Mr Read had been criticised for his leadership of the Post Office for some time, having been accused of being fixated with his pay package by its former chairman, Henry Staunton.
Mr Staunton was sacked earlier this year by the then business secretary, Kemi Badenoch.
Nigel Railton, a former Camelot executive, was installed as Mr Staunton’s successor.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Under his leadership, Mr Read had raised the idea of handing partial ownership to Post Office workers, although little progress has been made on such a scheme because of the company’s financial travails.
Mr Read will leave the Post Office next March, and his duties will be assumed while he focuses on the Horizon inquiry by Neil Brocklehurst, the company’s interim chief operating officer.
The outgoing chief executive will be paid during his notice period but will not receive any additional payoff, according to a government source.
A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade declined to comment.
Business
No change in CPI inflation ahead of interest rate decision – but another measure ticks unexpectedly up
There’s been no change in the rate of price rises, official inflation figures showed.
The rate of inflation stood at 2.2% in August, the Office for National Statistics said, the same as a month earlier.
The announcement comes the day before interest rate setters at the Bank of England decide on the cost of borrowing, controlled through the interest rate.
Markets are expecting only a 26% chance of an interest rate cut.
Rises behind the headline figure
But another measure of inflation ticked unexpectedly up. Core inflation rose to 3.6%, even higher than economists had forecast.
Bank officials closely watch core inflation as it gives a reading on price rises without elements like food and energy, which are prone to rise and fall quickly.
A rise in core inflation to 3.5% had been anticipated.
An increase was also seen in services inflation, which rose from 5.2% in July to 5.6% in August. This measure encompasses the culture and hospitality sectors.
Why?
The main item acting to bring up inflation was airfares to European destinations, which showed a large rise during the months, following a fall a year ago, the ONS said.
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Lower restaurant and hotel costs, and a cheaper price for refilling a tank of petrol or diesel, was a balance against the air far rise, as was slightly cheaper shop-bought alcohol.
Cheaper oil prices also meant the cost of raw materials was down, which meant the cost of goods leaving factories slowed.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Responding to the figures chief secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones, said: “Years of sky-high inflation have taken their toll, and prices are still much higher than four years ago.
“So, while more manageable inflation is welcome, we know that millions of families across Britain are struggling, which is why we are determined to fix the foundations of our economy so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of the country better off.”
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