Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Council apologises for failings

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry started in September 2017

The council that owned Grenfell Tower has apologised "unreservedly" for the ways in which it failed residents of the high-rise tower, during closing statements at the public inquiry.

The devastating fire at the west London building in June 2017 killed 72 people.

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea said the current national fire and building safety system was "too broken to be fixed by minor changes".

James Maxwell-Scott KC blamed "a culture of gaming the system".

Speaking for the council, he told the chairman of the long-running inquiry, Sir Martin Moore-Bick: "I have no doubt that when you embarked on this inquiry you expected to identify a sizeable number of failings, but even you may have been surprised by the nature, scale and extent of the failings which you and the inquiry team have so effectively uncovered.

"In this week of closing statements, you may think this is the most shocking and most disturbing overarching feature of all.

"It seems clear now that over many years, the construction industry developed, and central government presided over, a deeply flawed system."

• Grenfell: Why are families still waiting for justice?

Mr Maxwell-Scott KC said it might be appropriate for the inquiry panel to think it was "too generous" to consider that the system was "not fit for purpose".

He added: "You may think that not only was the system deeply flawed but that corporates working within the system actively sought to take advantage of flaws within it - that there was a culture of gaming the system."

A memorial to the victims of the tower has attracted hundreds of tributes

The council was the owner and landlord of Grenfell Tower, while the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO) was the body appointed by it to run its entire housing stock.

Reynobond PE is a type of ACM cladding that has been largely blamed for the lethal intensity and rapid spread of fire at Grenfell Tower.

In a written statement to the inquiry, the council said it apologised "unreservedly for its failings" across various areas, including its building control service, its monitoring of the TMO and self-closing doors.

Mr Maxwell-Scott KC told the hearing there was a need for "robust recommendations to address deep-rooted systemic problems" because the ultimate achievement of this inquiry was to "ensure that when people design, construct and refurbish buildings in future, a disaster like this never happens again".

He said the council had made "significant changes" in many areas including its building control service, resident engagement and how it managed fire safety.

On Tuesday, the company that manufactured the cladding which was blamed for spreading the fire suggested its products were misused during the refurbishment of the building.

On Monday, a lawyer for victims of the fire called for a national day of remembrance to mark the disaster.

Imran Khan said the bereaved, survivors and residents also wanted an "unequivocal, unambiguous and forthright apology" from companies implicated in the fire.

The Metropolitan Police has been leading a criminal investigation but a decision on charges may not come until the end of next year at the earliest, because the police want to see the inquiry's findings first.

Closing statement will be heard for the rest of the week, with the inquiry panel expected to deliver conclusions and recommendations next year.

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