Government ‘far too slow’ to respond to Grenfell disaster

The government has failed the victims and survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire and been “far too slow” to overhaul the UK’s building and fire safety regime, according to a damning report by a group of influential MPs.

The Housing, Communities and Local Government committee of MPs said the government had a moral duty to ensure buildings were safe by spelling out a firm timetable for the removal of dangerous cladding on high-risk buildings following the fire in west London two years ago which killed 72 people.

The committee’s report said greater urgency was also needed to establish an effective regulatory system that ensured building safety in the long-term.

“The committee is frustrated that, over a year since the publication of the final report of the Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety, the government has only recently started consulting on its proposals for the new regulatory regime,” it said.

The report said the £200m earmarked to cover the cost of removing replacing unsafe ACM cladding was “likely to fall far short of what will be needed to make all buildings safe” and ministers would have to find more money, and quickly.

Ongoing delays were “unacceptable” and the government had to set a “firm and short deadline” for completion of the work, the report added.

MPs were also concerned to hear reports from some Grenfell survivors that the new permanent housing many were living in was of a “very poor quality”, and they had not received the health screening programme that was promised in the aftermath of the fire.

 As well as criticising the government the report also blasted Kensington and Chelsea council for being “too slow to provide the support and services needed by people affected by the fire”.

Committee chair Clive Betts said: “We are two years on from the Grenfell Tower disaster and the government is far behind where it should be in every aspect of its response.

“Further delay is simply not acceptable. The government cannot morally justify funding the replacement of one form of dangerous cladding, but not others. It should immediately extend its fund to cover the removal and replacement of any form of combustible cladding – as defined by the government’s combustible cladding ban – from any high-rise or high-risk building.”

Betts said the government had fallen behind in developing a comprehensive building and fire safety framework.

“It has been over two years since the fire at Grenfell Tower, and more than a year since the publication of the final report of the Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety, and yet the government has only just published a consultation into its proposals for reform of the building safety regulatory system.

“The government must pick up the pace of reform, before it is too late,” he warned.

Jane Duncan, chair of the RIBA expert advisory group on fire safety, said there had been “an unacceptable delay” in reforming building and fire safety regulations since the Grenfell fire.

“While the restrictions on combustible cladding and insulation materials on high-rise residential buildings represented some progress, MPs are right that much more concerted action is urgently needed. RIBA has consistently called for more prescriptive fire-safety measures including sprinkler systems, and the cladding ban extended to more high-rise and higher-risk buildings such as schools, hospitals and care homes.

“The next prime minister must ensure that people can sleep safely in their homes.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said public safety was “paramount” and the government had committed up to £600m to fund the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding on high-rise social and private residential buildings.

“Ultimately building owners are responsible for the safety of their building and we expect them to carry out work quickly – anything less is unacceptable.

“At the same time, we are supporting the support the bereaved, survivors and their families of the Grenfell Tower tragedy and have already committed over £100 million.”

The government said it took the well-being of Grenfell Tower survivors and local residents “extremely seriously and it’s essential they have peace of mind regarding their health”.