Grenfell and
Building Safety
, Chair of the Housing,
Communities and Local Government (HCLG) Committee, has reiterated
her Committee's call for the Government to introduce an
independent national oversight mechanism when implementing the
recommendations of the Grenfell Tower inquiry.
The HCLG Committee has today published the Government's response
(23 July) to the Committee's inquiry on Grenfell and Building
Safety.
On 14 May, the HCLG Committee published correspondence (see
also news item) with a
series of findings and recommendations, following its short
inquiry on Grenfell and building safety.
The Government's response does not commit to a national oversight
mechanism. The Government response includes the comment that,
“The Cabinet Office is leading work to consider how oversight of
inquiry mechanisms can be improved more broadly.”
, Chair of the
Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG)
Committee said: ““It is crucial that Government is
properly held to account for implementing the recommendations of
the Grenfell inquiry, and disappointing that they have yet to
commit to introducing an independent mechanism which would apply
to the implementation of the recommendations of all public
inquiries.
“The Government should do the right thing and introduce this
independent mechanism, which will help reduce the risk of future
governments repeating the catastrophic mistakes which have seen
so many lose their lives in tragedies from Hillsborough to the
infected blood scandal, to the Grenfell Tower fire itself.
“Too often, residents living in social housing had their concerns
dismissed, neglected and ignored. It's vitally important that
social housing providers ensure that resident concerns are
treated respectfully and that the conditions of their homes are
addressed.”
The Government has also rejected the Committee's call for the
independent panel on the future of building control to be placed
on a statutory footing. In spite of concerns raised by the
Committee, the Government has said that it has no plans to extend
the provision for the installation of sprinkler provision to
existing care homes.
The Committee's original correspondence outlined recommendations
to Government on areas including engagement with Grenfell
residents, capacity in the building control sector, the work of
the Building Safety Regulator and delays in the sign off on the
safety of buildings, Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPS),
the Building Safety Levy, and on fire and rescue services.
ENDS
Further information
This press release is also on the Committee's website.
The Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee held two
evidence sessions for its short inquiry on the Government's
response to the Grenfell Inquiry recommendations (Phase 2). The
Committee also took the opportunity to explore progress on the
wider programme of work around building and fire safety and
remediation (sessions on Tuesday 1 April transcript and on
Tuesday 18 March transcript).
