Sir Keir Starmer ‘deeply sorry’ for failure of government to protect Grenfell victims
Sir Keir Starmer has said he is “deeply sorry” for the actions of the British government after a damning report into the Grenfell Tower blaze said ministers “failed to act”, despite knowing the risk of building materials.
A landmark report into the disaster that claimed 72 lives in June 2017 was published earlier on Wednesday, with the chair of the Grenfell Inquiry Sir Martin Moor-Bick saying the government was “well aware” of the deadly risks posed by combustible cladding and insulation a year before the fire.
The report also said there was “systematic 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.
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Making a statement to the Commons – and watched from the gallery by some of the Grenfell community – the prime minister quoted Sir Martin’s findings, saying: “The simple truth is that the deaths that occurred were all avoidable.
“Those who lived in the tower badly failed over a number of years, and in a number of different ways, by, as the report lays out, in full, just about every institution responsible for ensuring their safety.”
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Pointing to the report’s conclusion that there had been “decades of failure by central government” and that ministers’ desire to cut so-called “red tape” had “dominated the department’s thinking to such an extent that even matters affecting the safety of life were ignored, delayed or disregarded”, Sir Keir said sorry.
“I want to start with an apology on behalf of the British state to each and every one of you, and indeed to all of the families affected by this tragedy,” he said.
“It should never have happened. The country failed to discharge its most fundamental duty to protect you and your loved ones, the people that we are here to serve, and I am deeply sorry.”
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‘Human life was never a priority’
The prime minister said Wednesday’s “long awaited day of truth… must now lead to a day of justice”, as he pledged to ensure “full accountability, including through the criminal justice process… happens as swiftly as possible”.
He confirmed ministers would write to all the companies named in the report as “the first step to stopping them being awarded government contracts”, and would support both the police and prosecutors in their investigations going forward.
And he promised “more radical action to stop something like this from ever happening again”.
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Sir Keir said the government would look at all of the recommendations in the report and respond within six months, and he pledged to hold a debate on the issue in the Commons.
“But there are some things I can say right now,” he added, including speeding up the removal of cladding – with a legal requirement to force action – and ensure all new homes built are safe and secure.
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The Labour leader also revealed he had made a private visit to Grenfell Tower two weeks ago to lay a wreath and give his commitment to the work towards a memorial on the site.
He said: “As I walked down that narrow staircase from the 23rd floor and looked at walls burned by the thousand degree heat, I got just a sense of how utterly, utterly terrifying it must have been.
“And as I saw examples of the cladding on the outside of the building and listened to descriptions of the catastrophic and completely avoidable failures of that fateful refurbishment, I felt just a sense of the anger that now rises through that building.
“And it left me… with a profound and very personal determination to make the legacy of Grenfell Tower one of the defining changes to our country that I want to make as prime minister, to the families, the survivors and the immediate community.”
Responding to Sir Keir’s statement, former prime minister and Conservative leader Rishi Sunak said the report was “a damning indictment of over 30 years of successive state failures”.
He also offered his “deepest apologies to the families and victims”, adding: “The state let you down, and it must never do so again.”
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MP Mike Amesbury has pleaded guilty to assault by beating for punching a man in Cheshire.
The Runcorn and Helsby MP appeared at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Thursday morning where he admitted attacking 45-year-old Paul Fellows in Main Street, Frodsham, Cheshire, in October.
Speaking outside the court, he said his actions were “highly regrettable” and he was “sincerely sorry” to Mr Fellows and his family.
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CCTV footage showed Amesbury, who has been an MP since 2017, punching Mr Fellows to the ground.
Other previously released videos from another angle show Amesbury punching Mr Fellows repeatedly after knocking him to the floor as members of the public intervened.
It was reported to police at 2.48pm on Saturday 26 October.
The court heard how Amesbury told Mr Fellows “you won’t threaten your MP again” after punching him in the head with enough force to knock him to the ground.
The 55-year-old politician is currently an independent MP after he was suspended by Labour at the end of October when the CCTV footage emerged.
After admitting assault, the Labour Party confirmed his suspension will continue and he will remain an independent MP.
Reform UK said Amesbury should “do the honourable thing and resign immediately so a by-election can be held”.
The PM’s official spokesperson declined to comment on whether the MP should resign.
Pic: Richard Townshend/UK Parliament/PA
Punch followed chat about bridge closure
The court heard Mr Fellows recognised Amesbury in the taxi rank in Frodsham town centre at about 2am on 26 October last year.
Both were alone and had been drinking.
Alison Storey, prosecuting, said Mr Fellows approached the MP to remonstrate about a bridge closure in the town and CCTV then shows they spoke for several minutes but there was no aggression or raised voices.
Mr Fellows then started to walk away but Amesbury re-engaged and was heard saying “what” a few times before shouting it.
The victim then put his hands in his pockets and turned towards the taxi queue and when he turned back Amesbury punched him in the head, knocking him to the ground.
He then punched Mr Fellows again, at least five times, Ms Storey said.
She told the court he was then heard saying “you won’t threaten your MP again will you”.
Amesbury was voluntarily interviewed under caution by Cheshire Police in October and was charged with common assault on 7 November.
At the time, Amesbury said what happened was “deeply regrettable” and that he was cooperating with police.
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‘It is right he has taken responsibility’
A Labour Party spokesman said: “It is right that Mike Amesbury has taken responsibility for his unacceptable actions.
“He was rightly suspended by the Labour Party following the announcement of the police investigation.
“We cannot comment further whilst legal proceedings are still ongoing.”
Amesbury is set to be sentenced next month. If he is sent to prison or given a suspended sentence, he could lose his seat in the Commons.
A sentence of less than a year, even if it is suspended, would leave him liable to the recall process, which would trigger a by-election if 10% of registered voters in his seat sign a petition calling for it.
A jail term of more than a year would mean he automatically loses his seat.
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