Prime minister to write to firms named and shamed and put them on notice they will be barred from taxpayer-funded contracts
The prime minister has said that companies named and shamed in the Grenfell Inquiry report will not be handed government work in the future.
Responding to the report’s findings, Keir Starmer told MPs this afternoon: “This government will write to all companies found by the inquiry to have been part of these horrific failings as the first step to stopping them being awarded government contracts.”
The move satisfies one of the key demands of survivors’ group Grenfell United who yesterday said firms condemned by today’s report should be barred from public sector work.
Starmer added: “We will also reform the construction products industry that made this fatal cladding so homes are made of safe materials and those who compromise that safety will face the consequences.”
More on the Grenfell Inquiry Phase 2 report
Grenfell Inquiry decides against recommending further regulation of social housing providers
Grenfell Inquiry Phase 2 report: all our coverage in one place
Decades of central government failure led to Grenfell tragedy, says inquiry
Metropolitan Police chief stresses it could take 18 months to bring charges over Grenfell
He said the government “we will support the Met Police and the prosecutors as they complete their investigations” but warned: “It is vital that as we respond to this report today, we do not do or say anything that could compromise any future prosecution. Because the greatest injustice of all would be for the victims and all those affected not to get the justice they deserve.”
Meanwhile, London mayor Sadiq Khan said the government should ensure any company named in the report cannot work with the government or other public bodies in the future.
1 Readers' comment