The British Prime Minister, Theresa May has commented on latest in Grenfell tower investigation including that ‘combustible’ cladding has been used on other buildings.
She said,”Mr Speaker it should never have happened (Grenfell Tower fire). In a few moments I’ll say how we’re going to discover why it did, but as I said yesterday, that initial failure was then compounded by the fact that the support on the ground in the initial hours was not good enough.
As Prime Minister I have apologised for that second failure and taken responsibility for doing what we can to put it right. On my first visit to North Kensington, I met with the emergency services.
These extraordinary men and women put their lives on the line in an effort to save others, and my first responsibility was to check they had all the resources they needed. I then visited Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, where I met some of the most seriously injured survivors.
It was from that experience I decided we had to have an emergency fund. I also met a group of residents in Kensington who I then invited to come to Downing Street last weekend. I returned to Kensington again last night to hear directly from them about the progress that we are making.
Mr Speaker what became clear very quickly is the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea could not cope and it is right that the Chief Executive Officer has now resigned. It is also why I set up the Grenfell Tower Recovery Taskforce, which I have been chairing personally. But this is not just about the steps we take in the first few weeks. It is about a lasting commitment that we are making to support the families affected, long after the television cameras have gone.”
“All social landlords have been instructed to carry out additional fire safety checks on tower blocks and ensure the appropriate safety and response measures are in place. This is being done in cooperation with local fire and rescue services. We’ve also taken steps to make private landlords aware and made our checking facilities available to them for free. The House should of course be careful on speculating what caused this fire, but as a precaution, the government has arranged to test cladding in all relevant tower blocks.
Mr Speaker, shortly before I came to the chamber, I was informed that a number of these tests have come back as combustible. The relevant local authorities and local fire services have been informed, and as I speak they are taking all possible steps to ensure buildings are safe and to inform affected residents.”
“Landlords have a legal obligation to provide safe buildings and where they cannot do that, we expect alternative accommodation to be provided. We cannot and will not ask people to live in unsafe homes.
