Prime Minister Boris Johnson has written a letter to the Chair of the Public Inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire, The Rt Hon Sir Martin Moore-Bick, updating him on the government’s progress implementing the Chair’s Phase 1 recommendations of the inquiry.
In his letter the Prime Minister confirms: “Even in these unprecedented times, the Government’s commitment to implementing your recommendations as a priority remains unchanged”
The letter includes key points raised by Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick in a written statement on Grenfell, including both that the government will soon be publishing the draft Building Safety Bill for scrutiny before it is introduced in Parliament and a public consultation for the Fire Safety Bill will be issued soon setting out the government’s proposed approach to the remaining recommendations that call for legislative change.
The letter is accompanied by a progress statement that lists completed and ongoing activities covering:
- The ban on the use of combustible materials
- Remediation works
- Establishment of the Fire Protection Board
- A Technical Review of “Stay Put” Policies
- Building Safety Reform
- A New Fire Safety Bill
- Ongoing work looking at processes and procedures in the Fire and Rescue Service
In the three years since the Grenfell Tower fire, the Government has remained steadfast in its commitment to driving forward both cultural and legislative change so that no such tragedy can ever be allowed to happen again. Through implementation of the reforms highlighted in this statement and the wider work of Government and our stakeholders, we will move from the conditions that allowed a tragedy like the fire at Grenfell Tower to occur almost three years ago, to a system that ensures developers and building owners demonstrate greater responsibility for the safety of residents and which allows local authorities and fire and rescue authorities to enforce this. The Government is firmly committed to ensuring all residents are safe in their homes, now and in the future.
