22/06/2017

:00:07. > :00:08.Hello, it's Thursday, it's 9 o'clock, I'm Joanna Gosling,

:00:09. > :00:14.Forced to resign - the boss of Kensington

:00:15. > :00:17.and Chelsea Council Nicholas Holgate steps down amid criticism

:00:18. > :00:19.over the response to the Grenfell Tower fire -

:00:20. > :00:22.he says he was told to leave by the government.

:00:23. > :00:27.Labour says it was the right thing to do.

:00:28. > :00:33.He had to go, his council went awol in the days after this terrible fire

:00:34. > :00:35.at the time when the victims, survivors, whose family

:00:36. > :00:38.still looking for their family members who were missing,

:00:39. > :00:54.More on that to come. Plus we will have a report on the number of other

:00:55. > :00:57.tower blocks who have the same cladding as Grenfell Tower.

:00:58. > :01:01.Also on the programme...a warning to parents over the latest chat app

:01:02. > :01:05.aimed at teenagers our reporter was shown guns and pornography.

:01:06. > :01:08.I am on an app called monkey, where I can basically talk

:01:09. > :01:11.to strangers around the world for 10 seconds , i've heard people

:01:12. > :01:13.lying about their age, people have made sexual

:01:14. > :01:18.and offensive remarks to me and i've even been shown hard core porn

:01:19. > :01:32.That'll is Tory coming up around 9:15am. -- that full story.

:01:33. > :01:34.Prince Harry tells US magazine Newsweek that none of the Royals

:01:35. > :01:37.really wants to be King or Queen, but they act from duty.

:01:38. > :01:39.He also criticises the decision to make him walk behind

:01:40. > :01:43.We'll be speaking to the reporter who interviewed him over

:01:44. > :01:49.Welcome to the programme, we're live until 11 this morning.

:01:50. > :01:52.Do get in touch if your children have stumbled

:01:53. > :01:54.across inappropriate content online or if you have views on any

:01:55. > :01:59.Use the hashtag Victoria LIVE and If you text, you will be charged

:02:00. > :02:14.Our top story today...The chief executive of Kensington and Chelsea

:02:15. > :02:17.borough council says he has been forced to resign over the response

:02:18. > :02:20.The Government has denied forcing the resignation

:02:21. > :02:22.of chief executive - Nicholas Holgate, who said

:02:23. > :02:24.he had been forced to quit by the Communities Secretary,

:02:25. > :02:28.The leader of the council Nicholas Paget-Brown also

:02:29. > :02:32.appeared to distance himself from the dismissal.

:02:33. > :02:34.It leaves it unclear who actually sought Mr Holgate's resignation.

:02:35. > :02:49.And why, as the Prime Minister herself has now

:02:50. > :02:51.admitted, was the response following the fire inadequate?

:02:52. > :02:54.The support on the ground for families in the

:02:55. > :02:56.initial hours following the fire was not good enough.

:02:57. > :02:59.People were left without belongings, without roofs

:03:00. > :03:01.over their heads, without even

:03:02. > :03:04.basic information about what had happened and what they should do and

:03:05. > :03:08.That was a failure of the state, local and

:03:09. > :03:10.national, to help people when they needed it most.

:03:11. > :03:19.As Prime Minister, I apologise for that failure.

:03:20. > :03:21.That apology after so much anger in the

:03:22. > :03:26.Some of it directed at the government, some at

:03:27. > :03:36.Now the chief executive of Kensington and Chelsea

:03:37. > :03:42.Council says the government has forced him to resign.

:03:43. > :03:48.In a statement, Nicholas Holgate said despite wanting

:03:49. > :03:57.in very challenging circumstances, he risked becoming a distraction.

:03:58. > :03:58.He said his team had always worked with

:03:59. > :04:00.New flats have now been allocated for survivors of the fire.

:04:01. > :04:00.So far, victims have received some ?700,000 from

:04:01. > :04:03.But a Conservative government and council are still

:04:04. > :04:10.Why wasn't more done to improve fire safety in tower blocks

:04:11. > :04:19.before a tragedy on this scale could happen?

:04:20. > :04:25.Tom is here with me, is there any clarity on why he has gone? No,

:04:26. > :04:33.complete confusion this morning, this is the statement we got around

:04:34. > :04:37.midnight last night, I am in, yes, working this morning, this is the

:04:38. > :04:41.exact wording so people cannot accuse us of misreading it or

:04:42. > :04:45.twisting it, he said this that Sergey Abbey, although he did not

:04:46. > :04:48.name him specifically required the leader of the council to seek my

:04:49. > :04:51.resignation so he's saying he was pushed by the government. Then we

:04:52. > :04:55.are getting a statement from the government this morning from the

:04:56. > :05:02.department that Sergey Javi Ros saying actually it wasn't ours,

:05:03. > :05:06.that's a matter for local council, the resignations of local

:05:07. > :05:14.councillors, and we have the leader of the council a Conservative

:05:15. > :05:18.leader, Nick Javad -- Nick Nicholas Paget Brown, and he said Nicholas

:05:19. > :05:26.Holgate was doing a great job and we didn't want him to leave. We haven't

:05:27. > :05:30.heard directly from Sajid Javiid. The only people saying that directly

:05:31. > :05:39.is labour. Let's hear from John Healey.

:05:40. > :05:43.He had to go, his council went awol in the days after this terrible fire

:05:44. > :05:45.at the time when the victims, survivors, whose family

:05:46. > :05:47.still looking for their family members who were missing,

:05:48. > :06:02.And they needed someone to reassure them, coordinated the relief effort,

:06:03. > :06:08.we didn't see anyone on the ground in the days after the fire. He had

:06:09. > :06:11.to go. It seems the government is getting its act together. You have

:06:12. > :06:15.the Prime Minister in the Commons yesterday saying hands up, some

:06:16. > :06:19.things went wrong at a national and local level, but then, clearly, the

:06:20. > :06:23.government strategy is all hands to the deck, they have this special

:06:24. > :06:33.task force for Grenfell Tower 24-hour phone lines, and they have

:06:34. > :06:38.handed out almost ?600,000 to victims, survivors, relatives,

:06:39. > :06:41.people affected, 65 new-build flats allocated so far, most people's

:06:42. > :06:46.housing requirements already assessed, some still to go, but they

:06:47. > :06:47.say that main goal of rehousing people locally within the borough

:06:48. > :06:51.will happen soon. Thank you so much. The Prime Minister is due

:06:52. > :06:53.to give a statement in the Commons later this morning

:06:54. > :06:56.on the Grenfell Tower Block fire. And just after ten o'clock,

:06:57. > :07:00.our reporter Jim Reid has been looking into Tower Blocks -

:07:01. > :07:03.thought to use the same type Let's catch up with the rest of the

:07:04. > :07:14.news. Annita McVeigh is in the BBC

:07:15. > :07:17.Newsroom with a summary Theresa May is expected to offer

:07:18. > :07:21.certainty to EU nationals living in the UK when she meets

:07:22. > :07:23.with European leaders It will be the Prime Minister's

:07:24. > :07:27.first encounter with the other 27-leaders since she lost her

:07:28. > :07:29.parliamentary majority and formal Our political correspondent

:07:30. > :07:35.Ben Wright reports. It was a Queen's Speech

:07:36. > :07:40.dominated by Brexit. My government's priority

:07:41. > :07:42.is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves

:07:43. > :07:46.the European Union. With Britain set to leave the EU

:07:47. > :07:51.by March 2019 there is a vast amount of law to pass by a government that

:07:52. > :07:54.does not have a majority And today, Theresa May heads

:07:55. > :08:00.to Brussels for the first time since she lost her Commons majority

:08:01. > :08:04.in the general election. Brexit negotiations began on Monday

:08:05. > :08:07.and one of the big sticking points is how to secure the status

:08:08. > :08:11.of the more than 3 million EU nationals living

:08:12. > :08:14.in the UK and the 900,000 This evening, Theresa May will set

:08:15. > :08:21.out her vision to the leaders of the other 27 member states

:08:22. > :08:23.in Brussels, something she refused to be drawn

:08:24. > :08:27.on during the election campaign. Labour says these rights should be

:08:28. > :08:31.guaranteed immediately. How this early part

:08:32. > :08:34.of the negotiation goes could be crucial in setting the tone

:08:35. > :08:38.for the rest of the Brexit talks. The government is to use money

:08:39. > :08:45.from its aid budget in an attempt to reduce the flow of migrants

:08:46. > :08:49.from Africa across the People who have started

:08:50. > :08:54.on the journey will be encouraged to return home; there will also be

:08:55. > :08:56.help for those in need. The UN says seventy thousand have

:08:57. > :09:11.made that journey so far this year - Two men have died after a crane

:09:12. > :09:15.collapsed at a building site in Crewe. Another man believed to be

:09:16. > :09:17.the crane driver is in hospital with serious injuries that aren't thought

:09:18. > :09:23.to be life-threatening. The occupants of a house damaged by the

:09:24. > :09:26.falling crane went injured. The Duke of Edinburgh has spent a second

:09:27. > :09:30.night in hospital as a precautionary measure after being admitted with an

:09:31. > :09:35.infection arising from a pre-existing condition. Buckingham

:09:36. > :09:38.Palace says Prince Phillip who's 96 remains in good spirits and is up

:09:39. > :09:43.and about inside the King Edward VII Hospital. He missed the state

:09:44. > :09:47.opening of Parliament yesterday, his place was taken by the Prince of

:09:48. > :09:51.Wales. Prince Harry has suggested no wonder no royal family wants to take

:09:52. > :09:55.over from the Queen. In an interview with Newsweek he said is there any

:09:56. > :09:59.one of the Royal Family who wants to be king or queen? I don't think so

:10:00. > :10:02.but we will carry out our duties at the right time. He also criticises

:10:03. > :10:15.the decision for him to walk a long way behind his mother's coffin at

:10:16. > :10:18.her funeral in 1997. Many of the UK's top universities have failed to

:10:19. > :10:23.secure a gold award in teaching standards. Of those who took part in

:10:24. > :10:27.the eight were given a gold rating. Some of those ranked silver and

:10:28. > :10:32.Bronze have questioned the criteria used in the scheme. The Iraqi and US

:10:33. > :10:40.military says so-called Islamic State militants have -- blown up a

:10:41. > :10:43.great mosque in Mosul. It's for the leader of Islamic State made his

:10:44. > :10:47.only public appearance after proclaiming a new caliphate three

:10:48. > :10:53.years ago. The Iraqi Prime Minister says blowing up the building is an

:10:54. > :10:57.admission of defeat by jihadist. A well-known lifestyle blogger in

:10:58. > :11:01.France has been killed by an exploding cream dispenser. Rebecca

:11:02. > :11:05.Burke's death was announced in what her family, domestic accident, the

:11:06. > :11:08.did these the -- the device was believed to have exploded and struck

:11:09. > :11:14.her chest, pension media reporting she died of cardiac arrest despite

:11:15. > :11:20.receiving medical attention. That's the latest news. More at 9:30am.

:11:21. > :11:26.Joanna. Thank you. Get in touch with us, we are going to be talking about

:11:27. > :11:30.the monkey app chat, there are concerns there may be inappropriate

:11:31. > :11:33.content on it and certainly our reporter who tried it but was

:11:34. > :11:38.exposed to some quite shocking things when she tried it. We'd love

:11:39. > :11:43.to know if it's something you use or you are concerned about what your

:11:44. > :11:47.kids are doing. Whether you think there are enough controls. Get in

:11:48. > :11:54.touch. Text is charged at the standard network rate. Let's catch

:11:55. > :11:57.up with all the sport. We note the Lions starting at 15 for the first

:11:58. > :12:03.test against New Zealand. What kind of the team has been picked? And

:12:04. > :12:06.attacking one which I think will please purists. Peter O'Mahony

:12:07. > :12:12.captaining the side, Sam Warburton starting on the bench. Owen Farrell

:12:13. > :12:18.will start at fly half, he said after picking up an injury earlier

:12:19. > :12:20.in the tour. The backs, the interesting selection, Elliot Daly,

:12:21. > :12:26.Ian Williams and Anthony Watson select that. There is the captain,

:12:27. > :12:30.that selection in the back by Warren Gatland suggesting he would try to

:12:31. > :12:35.attack and look to score tries against the world champions. That

:12:36. > :12:40.will please those who will be excited to see him adopting the

:12:41. > :12:48.strategy. Let's hear from him. You see we picked the team on form and

:12:49. > :12:51.layers that are probably, be a lot of differences from the start of the

:12:52. > :12:56.tour to now in terms of what people speculated the side would be and I

:12:57. > :13:01.think the messages we have tried to deliver our consistent from us, now

:13:02. > :13:07.that 23 have been selected, we are pretty excited. England's cricketers

:13:08. > :13:13.showing some form yesterday, how was that different to the champions

:13:14. > :13:18.Trophy display? England against South Africa, both sides struggling

:13:19. > :13:22.a little bit in the recent champions Trophy but England, I think,

:13:23. > :13:30.delighted to get off to a winning start in the T 20s, Jonny Bairstow

:13:31. > :13:36.scoring 60 not out, duty impressive, England winning by nine wickets,

:13:37. > :13:41.restricting South Africa 242-3, England going on to win with 33

:13:42. > :13:45.balls to spare. Real improvement for England, they played well in the

:13:46. > :13:47.champions Trophy but that was a tournament they were expecting to

:13:48. > :13:52.win, they'll be pleased they got off to a winning start as they look to

:13:53. > :13:58.continue to build a reputation as an improving side in the shorter

:13:59. > :14:03.formats of the game. Finally, ladies Day at Arscott? Absolutely, needs no

:14:04. > :14:08.introduction, expect hats and high fashion, as you can imagine. Very

:14:09. > :14:11.strict dress code as you can imagine in the Royal enclosure for women in

:14:12. > :14:18.particular, birds and dresses above the knee, no fascinator is, that is

:14:19. > :14:22.very important, he did listen the dress code. Because of the hot

:14:23. > :14:26.weather, Cuba and conditions, expect it to stay dry and for gentlemen and

:14:27. > :14:31.the Royal enclosure, top hats must be black or grey, West Coates and

:14:32. > :14:36.morning suit is the dress of choice. As far as the racing today, the

:14:37. > :14:42.4:20pm, the Gold cup, the signature race. It dates back to 1807 and if

:14:43. > :14:50.anyone wants a flutter, you have to say, the favourite today, Order Of

:14:51. > :14:53.St George trained by Aidan O'Brien who has a huge reputation in this

:14:54. > :15:01.race, winning it seven times previously, that is probably for

:15:02. > :15:05.your money wants to go. I will see about that. I think I may have

:15:06. > :15:12.misheard but I think you might have heard in the Royal enclosure it's

:15:13. > :15:18.obligatory that dresses and skirts are just above the knee... Just

:15:19. > :15:22.above the knee. I wasn't sure how for -- short they were forcing

:15:23. > :15:27.people to work. I was worried about the Queen. Thank you! Head teachers

:15:28. > :15:30.and parents have been warned that a new chapter in the teenagers could

:15:31. > :15:34.expose them to extras are conversations. Monkey app allows

:15:35. > :15:38.people to be the chat from strangers across the world ten seconds with

:15:39. > :15:43.the option of talking for longer. Any child 13 can sign up, we have

:15:44. > :15:47.censored the film we are about to show you but covers graphic themes

:15:48. > :15:51.you may not want to watch. That lasts about three minutes. The

:15:52. > :15:54.makers of the app says safety is the primary concern which is why the

:15:55. > :15:59.encourage users to read and follow the community guidelines and say

:16:00. > :16:12.inappropriate behaviour is rare. Our reporter Amber had reports.

:16:13. > :16:24.I am on an app called Monkey where I can basically talk

:16:25. > :16:48.to strangers around the world for ten seconds.

:16:49. > :16:52.I've heard people lying about their age, people have made

:16:53. > :16:55.sexual and offensive remarks to me, and I've even been shown hardcore

:16:56. > :17:35.I signed up for this app as my mid-20s self,

:17:36. > :17:38.and I was connected to a whole array of people, including many men who

:17:39. > :17:41.It's incredibly inappropriate content on an app that

:17:42. > :18:02.Any child over the age of 13 can sign up for this app, and it claims

:18:03. > :18:05.to match you with people who are a similar age to you,

:18:06. > :18:09.although there really doesn't seem to be many checks in place.

:18:10. > :18:12.We managed to sign up on another phone as a 13-year-old girl

:18:13. > :18:15.and spoke to kids around the world, including some here

:18:16. > :18:38.Monkey say they rely on other users to report it if people

:18:39. > :18:41.are lying about their age or they have acted inappropriately.

:18:42. > :18:44.They say they will review the case and if you have broken the rules,

:18:45. > :18:57.But despite all these measures in place, it does

:18:58. > :19:06.Well, the makers of the app declined our request

:19:07. > :19:21.for an interview but they said safety is their primary concern.

:19:22. > :19:23.They added while inappropriate behaviour is rare, it can happen

:19:24. > :19:27.and we request that users report it to us by tapping the policeman icon

:19:28. > :19:29.so we may ban users who have violated our community guidelines.

:19:30. > :19:32.We look forward to keeping Monkey fun and safe for young people

:19:33. > :19:36.Let's speak now to Lorin LaFave, who founded the Breck Foundation,

:19:37. > :19:40.after her 14-year-old son was mudrered, after being groomed

:19:41. > :19:42.online, Megan Kyrionymou, who is a youth worker,

:19:43. > :19:56.Welcome all of you. Lauren, you actually have heard about this app

:19:57. > :20:00.and decided to go on it with your daughter to see what it was about.

:20:01. > :20:04.As an experiment, to see what is going on out there because of the

:20:05. > :20:11.work we do with the foundation and I was shocked. What did you find?

:20:12. > :20:17.Immediately there was a lot of crude sexualise languid and gestures, most

:20:18. > :20:26.of them, boys and men, were older, and they were in bed, and were mass

:20:27. > :20:32.debating, and we did see a Venus. She is 15 and a half. It is

:20:33. > :20:36.something she might come across on her own but I was glad I was sitting

:20:37. > :20:41.next to her. Did she go on with her real age because under the

:20:42. > :20:45.guidelines of her app, she should not be connecting with adults. It

:20:46. > :20:48.just came up. They all said they were teenagers but there were men

:20:49. > :20:53.who looked like they were in their high 20s. But they were very crude,

:20:54. > :20:58.and I just wonder what sort of value system to the people using this app

:20:59. > :21:03.have, because they called her ugly, it was like we have just heard,

:21:04. > :21:08.asking her to do things. Using the F word. There was nothing nice about

:21:09. > :21:13.it. I could see it was exciting and an interesting thing to do. In what

:21:14. > :21:19.way? Because every ten seconds you get to see a surprise guest. So it

:21:20. > :21:22.is not all like that, you can get some nice surprises. And some people

:21:23. > :21:27.don't show their face at all, and then you are just like, it is kind

:21:28. > :21:30.of boring. My favourite, it look like a young guy who had a great

:21:31. > :21:34.voices sang a song for her, and I think that is most more dangerous,

:21:35. > :21:36.because it was not showing his face, but he is singing a song that every

:21:37. > :21:41.girl, he didn't know my daughter yet. Basically getting at those

:21:42. > :21:47.heartstrings, may be building a relationship and that was worrying.

:21:48. > :21:51.Megan, you worked with kids as a youth worker, what have they said to

:21:52. > :21:54.you about this app? First of all they were showing me because they

:21:55. > :21:58.thought it was quite funny, and every other person that I did link

:21:59. > :22:03.in with, they were masturbating to these young people. And again, was

:22:04. > :22:08.this adults were saying they were younger and getting connected to

:22:09. > :22:13.kids? Yes, the app says between the ages of 13 and 19, and when adults

:22:14. > :22:16.are logging in, they are putting in a different age, pretending to be a

:22:17. > :22:19.17-year-old from a different country, and then when you see them,

:22:20. > :22:25.they are a grown adult with full facial hair. Lisa, the makers of the

:22:26. > :22:30.app say if people are doing that it is very easy to get rid of them

:22:31. > :22:35.because there is a policeman I can, you reported and they get blocked.

:22:36. > :22:38.But that is after the event has happened, after the child has

:22:39. > :22:42.already been exposed to inappropriate content or perhaps

:22:43. > :22:46.started that connection with a person, and what is concerning is

:22:47. > :22:51.that you can then take that connection to another app like

:22:52. > :22:55.Snapchat, so it is not just restricted to ten seconds. That

:22:56. > :22:58.child has already seen inappropriate content, may have already made

:22:59. > :23:03.contact and followed up on that content, and we know that groomers

:23:04. > :23:06.can work very quickly to establish that initial relationship and take

:23:07. > :23:10.that contact the maybe further online abuse, but also potentially

:23:11. > :23:13.making contact abuse subsequently. So we are really concerned about

:23:14. > :23:17.this and what we would like to see is that rather than waiting for

:23:18. > :23:21.after the event has happened, that we build safeguards into the

:23:22. > :23:28.internet. Howdy you do that, though? As with any app you have to put in

:23:29. > :23:33.details but it is very easy to put fake details. We have commitment to

:23:34. > :23:40.age verification, which needs to be robust, not that you just put in the

:23:41. > :23:44.age want to be. How can age verification be effective? It would

:23:45. > :23:48.mean that where it is restricting children to contacting children,

:23:49. > :23:53.that would be the case. In a practical sense, how does that

:23:54. > :23:57.happen? Without getting into the technical detail, there are

:23:58. > :24:02.third-party ways of establishing an age verification process. It can

:24:03. > :24:05.easily be done? It can be done, it has been agreed by the government

:24:06. > :24:10.that will be very important, but then we need a regulator to make

:24:11. > :24:14.sure that the apps are applying that. Those internet companies and

:24:15. > :24:17.social network sites have to be held to account so if they are failing to

:24:18. > :24:22.protect children in this way, they are held to account and that is

:24:23. > :24:26.built in. We can also build in some minimal standards, so that after

:24:27. > :24:29.having the conversation after the app is already out there, we have

:24:30. > :24:35.this conversation and minimum standards and protection are built

:24:36. > :24:43.into them. Lauren, the creator of the app say that it was designed by

:24:44. > :24:47.teams, and they view their -- by teenagers. Sometimes teenagers are

:24:48. > :24:51.embarrassed to tell their real-world friend something that an intimate

:24:52. > :25:00.friend can help with. You have been through a horrendous situation, in

:25:01. > :25:03.that your son, Breck, was groomed by somebody online, he thought it was a

:25:04. > :25:09.friend online, and obviously just with terrible consequences for all

:25:10. > :25:13.of you. How do you view the idea of online friends? I think in this

:25:14. > :25:18.case, the way that app is set up, it is too easy for people to make a

:25:19. > :25:21.game of it. There are not to be people who want to meet friends,

:25:22. > :25:26.they want to have a laugh, see how rude they can be and get away with

:25:27. > :25:32.it. It will be up to the application makers, so that if anyone is blocked

:25:33. > :25:37.or reported they will act on that. Maybe the at IS could get a bit

:25:38. > :25:41.cleaner after time -- may be the app could get a bit cleaner after time,

:25:42. > :25:44.but it is too easy to act inappropriately when no one is in

:25:45. > :25:48.that room with you guiding you are making sure you are doing the right

:25:49. > :25:51.thing. What scares me is when you look down at the terms and

:25:52. > :25:54.conditions, there are a lot of helplines for someone who might be

:25:55. > :25:58.in crisis or need help. That is great but what made me think is if a

:25:59. > :26:02.child is in crisis, they go on there and they meet someone who doesn't

:26:03. > :26:07.care about them, you know, that could be even worse for them. For

:26:08. > :26:11.asking them to do self harm, something sexual they are not ready

:26:12. > :26:15.for. So the fact that you have to put all of these links on to keep

:26:16. > :26:19.them safe reminds me that the reason they might be going on there in the

:26:20. > :26:23.first places because they are vulnerable and looking for some of

:26:24. > :26:27.help. So it would be safer if they would go directly to the helplines,

:26:28. > :26:30.rather than find them on the bottom of this app, which I don't think

:26:31. > :26:34.children would find, it was only because I was searching it out.

:26:35. > :26:36.Thank you, and let us know your thoughts. If you have any experience

:26:37. > :26:39.that you want to share. Finding a new home for

:26:40. > :26:47.the Dale Youth boxing club - destroyed in last week's

:26:48. > :26:52.fire at Grenfell Tower. It's helped nurture dozens of

:26:53. > :26:54.champions at all levels, including Olympic gold medal winner

:26:55. > :26:57.James DeGale and current world Next this morning -

:26:58. > :27:00.Prince Harry has told a US magazine that no-one in the Royal Family

:27:01. > :27:03.wants to be king or queen, adding that "we are not doing this

:27:04. > :27:06.for ourselves but for the greater In an interview with Newsweek,

:27:07. > :27:09.the Prince also criticises the decision for him to follow

:27:10. > :27:12.Princess Diana's coffin at her funeral procession in 1997,

:27:13. > :27:14.a week after she died With me is Angela Levin -

:27:15. > :27:27.she's the award-winning journalist who interviewed

:27:28. > :27:34.Prince Harry for Newsweek. Talking to him over the past year

:27:35. > :27:39.for Newsweek. So you had amazing access to Prince Harry. Yes, the

:27:40. > :27:50.whole piece took me about a year to do. A while to get them to agree.

:27:51. > :27:53.There were various places he would offer me where he was going and I

:27:54. > :27:58.would say yes please, that's lovely. I didn't actually talk to him

:27:59. > :28:02.personally, I was one of people who were wandering around and listening

:28:03. > :28:06.to what he was saying. Every now and then he would give me a very quick

:28:07. > :28:13.look to tell me that he knew I was there. So you were sort of sizing

:28:14. > :28:17.each other up at that stage? Very much so, exactly right, because my

:28:18. > :28:23.aim was always to get a conversation with him, which is very, very rare.

:28:24. > :28:27.And I knew I had to present myself in the best possible way. So it

:28:28. > :28:32.sounds like then, obviously when you got to that conversation, there was

:28:33. > :28:38.a level of trust, because it sounds like he was pretty open. He was

:28:39. > :28:43.pretty open. It took me a while. I had been doing interviewing for a

:28:44. > :28:47.very long time. As you know, you wait for the opportunity and you ask

:28:48. > :28:53.the question. I met him twice. At the end of the first one, which was

:28:54. > :29:00.the longest one, he did say, this is on the record, so I have felt

:29:01. > :29:03.totally able to use it. I came out of there and I leapt in the air

:29:04. > :29:09.because I thought, this is good stuff. This is the one he said about

:29:10. > :29:13.no one wants to be King or Queen. And also about walking behind his

:29:14. > :29:17.mother's Coughlin, which actually if somebody imagines that to a

:29:18. > :29:24.12-year-old who is very sensitive is the most horrific thing to do in

:29:25. > :29:29.public -- about his mother's Tampa. These are the pictures. He was a

:29:30. > :29:32.12-year-old boy, and as you say, you sort of let you in now to those

:29:33. > :29:37.private thoughts the has about that moment. Do you know, I think it is

:29:38. > :29:40.probably something that happens in retrospect, because when you are 12

:29:41. > :29:44.you don't want to do something but you know you have two, everybody

:29:45. > :29:48.tells you around you you have to. You are not in a good state, so you

:29:49. > :29:51.do that. But as he probably went through his teenage years, he would

:29:52. > :29:55.probably think, hello, this is not right, I didn't want to do that. And

:29:56. > :30:05.I think when he went through his bad patch in his 20s, that came up even

:30:06. > :30:08.more. It had just stayed down there. You look at his face, it is

:30:09. > :30:10.absolutely in anguish, and he is holding his hands behind his back,

:30:11. > :30:13.obviously feeling totally alone and devastated, watching something that

:30:14. > :30:22.is horrific for any child to see, really, their parent's coffin. So

:30:23. > :30:26.how much did he say around this? Does he feel that it did make things

:30:27. > :30:30.worse of the fact he was thrust into the limelight in that way so

:30:31. > :30:35.quickly? I think the whole thing was a build-up of not having his mother,

:30:36. > :30:41.and the difficulties that ensued. Whatever Diana's issues were, and

:30:42. > :30:49.the public did find some of it unappealing, he was her son. He said

:30:50. > :30:53.she always made everything fun, she was always very emotional, she loved

:30:54. > :30:56.him a great deal and they just loved being with her. She made them laugh,

:30:57. > :31:03.and I think a mother who makes you laugh and gives you lots of love is

:31:04. > :31:07.a good thing. And she had flaws, but they loved her as her mother and

:31:08. > :31:12.Harry has similar characteristics. He is very charismatic. I watched

:31:13. > :31:13.him anywhere, and he had people eating out of his hand very, very

:31:14. > :31:24.quickly. In making the criticism of the

:31:25. > :31:29.decision, did he pointed any word in particular? No, he didn't, and I

:31:30. > :31:32.didn't want to push on because I thought that was an incredible

:31:33. > :31:35.comment to say and if I pushed him he might have retreated, you know,

:31:36. > :31:40.you get something quite precious and you hold onto it as it is. And he

:31:41. > :31:45.also said, but he doesn't believe anybody wants to be king or queen,

:31:46. > :31:50.they do it out of duty. I think that is because they both want to be

:31:51. > :31:55.ordinary which they cannot be, this whole touchy, really, New Age Royal

:31:56. > :31:59.Family want to have a private life, they are not like the Queen who they

:32:00. > :32:04.absolutely marvel at, she is totally dedicated to them but the thing was,

:32:05. > :32:07.when she was much younger and her children were much younger she would

:32:08. > :32:12.go and see the horses first then she came back from a royal visit rather

:32:13. > :32:15.than her children and they have missed out on so it's come down to

:32:16. > :32:21.the next generation and they want to be able to do things, to do what

:32:22. > :32:24.they can do, and that's why they want to and they tried to remodel

:32:25. > :32:33.the monarchy when William takes over after Prince Charles and make it a

:32:34. > :32:37.much more open, Feeley type of thing, they really get involved, for

:32:38. > :32:40.instance in charity. They don't want their name just on the top of the

:32:41. > :32:45.page and turn out once a year, they want to get involved, all this talk

:32:46. > :32:48.about mental health which has been incredibly powerful, they have given

:32:49. > :32:53.of themselves which is absolutely extraordinary. End of a stiff upper

:32:54. > :32:56.lip, I don't know quite whether that's a good thing or not but

:32:57. > :33:00.that's what they're after. When he's talking about no one wanting to be

:33:01. > :33:04.king or queen is he effectively saying Prince Charles is the last of

:33:05. > :33:09.that generation that has that duty. No, I don't think so, I think they

:33:10. > :33:13.have a tremendous sense of duty, Prince Harry in particular was very

:33:14. > :33:17.keen on saying they do believe in the monarchy, they think it's an

:33:18. > :33:22.enormously good institution, it's just that the restrictions and what

:33:23. > :33:25.they cannot do and how they have to behave, you want to remodel. I don't

:33:26. > :33:31.think for a second they wouldn't take up the responsibility. Angela,

:33:32. > :33:37.thank you. Well done for securing that and getting such an insight.

:33:38. > :33:41.Thank you. We can just show you some pictures of the hospital, Prince

:33:42. > :33:48.Philip being treated, we had news yesterday he had been taken into

:33:49. > :33:51.hospital for routine tests, we were told yesterday, we understand he may

:33:52. > :33:59.be leaving that hospital now this morning. A statement from Buckingham

:34:00. > :34:07.Palace yesterday said the Prince had been taken in, he stepped down from

:34:08. > :34:15.royal duties earlier this year. He is now in his 90s and has been

:34:16. > :34:19.taking it easier but he is 96, actually, taken to hospital on

:34:20. > :34:23.Tuesday evening in what the Palace described as a precautionary

:34:24. > :34:27.measure. They have said he is in good spirits in hospital, we gather

:34:28. > :34:28.he is going to be leaving shortly. We will keep our eyes across that

:34:29. > :34:40.Still to come... and keep you updated.

:34:41. > :34:43.The Prime Minister is due to make a statement on the Grenfell Tower

:34:44. > :34:46.fire. And also... in the flames at Grenfell tower,

:34:47. > :34:51.is planning to fight Here's ANNITA in the BBC Newsroom

:34:52. > :35:06.with a summary of todays news. Thank you, Joanna and good morning.

:35:07. > :35:09.The government has denied forcing the resignation of the Chief

:35:10. > :35:12.Executive of Kensington and Chelsea borough council.

:35:13. > :35:14.The chief executive of Kensington and Chelsea borough council says

:35:15. > :35:17.he has been forced to resign over the response to the fire

:35:18. > :35:21.The leader of the council Nicholas Paget-Brown also

:35:22. > :35:22.appeared to distance himself from the dismissal.

:35:23. > :35:26.Theresa May will head to Brussels today to raise the issue of future

:35:27. > :35:28.rights of EU citizens living in Britain, a day after

:35:29. > :35:30.the Queen's speech which was dominated by Brexit.

:35:31. > :35:33.It will be the Prime Minister's first encounter with the other

:35:34. > :35:35.27-leaders since she lost her parliamentary majority and formal

:35:36. > :35:36.negotiations to leave the European Union began.

:35:37. > :35:39.The Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has said Mrs May will make

:35:40. > :35:42.a generous offer, and he hoped the rest of the EU would respond

:35:43. > :35:46.The government is to use money from its aid budget in an attempt

:35:47. > :35:49.to reduce the flow of migrants from Africa across the

:35:50. > :35:52.People who have started on the journey will be encouraged

:35:53. > :35:55.to return home; there will also be help for those in need.

:35:56. > :35:58.The UN says seventy thousand have made that journey so far this year -

:35:59. > :36:04.Two men have died after a crane collapsed at

:36:05. > :36:07.Another man, who is believed to be the crane driver,

:36:08. > :36:10.is in hospital with serious injuries that aren't thought

:36:11. > :36:13.The occupants of a house damaged by the falling

:36:14. > :36:26.We are now going to hear from Theresa May in the House of Commons.

:36:27. > :36:29.I felt that was essential to bring this to the attention of the house

:36:30. > :36:34.this morning. Mr Speaker, what happened in the early hours of last

:36:35. > :36:38.Wednesday was one of the most open -- unimaginable tragedy is our

:36:39. > :36:42.country has seen recently. As of this morning 79 people are confirmed

:36:43. > :36:46.dead or listed as missing presumed dead and with work on going to

:36:47. > :36:50.recover the bodies sadly the death toll may rise further. We already

:36:51. > :36:55.know many children are among the dead and that in some cases whole

:36:56. > :36:59.families perished. And those who survived have lost loved ones,

:37:00. > :37:04.friends, neighbours and in many cases everything they own. Mr

:37:05. > :37:08.Speaker, it should never have happened. In a feud moments I will

:37:09. > :37:11.say how we are going to discover why it did but as I said yesterday, that

:37:12. > :37:16.initial failure was then compounded either fact that the support on the

:37:17. > :37:21.ground in the initial hours was not good enough. As Prime Minister I

:37:22. > :37:25.have apologised for that second failure and taken responsibility for

:37:26. > :37:30.doing what we can to put it right. On my first visit to North

:37:31. > :37:33.Kensington I met with emergency services, these extra ordinary men

:37:34. > :37:37.and women put their lives on the line in an effort to save others and

:37:38. > :37:41.by first responsibility was to check they had everything they needed. I

:37:42. > :37:45.then visited Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, and met some of the most

:37:46. > :37:49.seriously injured survivors. It was from that experience I decided we

:37:50. > :37:53.had to have an emergency fund, I also met a group of residents in

:37:54. > :37:57.Kensington who I invited to Downing Street last weekend, I returned to

:37:58. > :38:00.Kensington last night to hear directly from them about the

:38:01. > :38:05.progress we are making. Mr Speaker of what became clear very quickly is

:38:06. > :38:08.that the royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea could not cope and it is

:38:09. > :38:14.right that the Chief Executive Officer has now resigned. It is also

:38:15. > :38:18.why I said up the Grenfell Tower recovery task force which I had in

:38:19. > :38:22.sharing personally. But this is not just about the steps we take in the

:38:23. > :38:26.first few weeks, it's about a lasting commitment that we are

:38:27. > :38:29.making to supporting the families affected long after the television

:38:30. > :38:34.cameras have gone. So let me set out in detail but the -- steps we are

:38:35. > :38:38.taking to support the victims and rehouse those who lost their homes.

:38:39. > :38:42.On Friday morning the government established a central command centre

:38:43. > :38:47.under the leadership of John Barrow Dale, the Chief Executive of the

:38:48. > :38:49.City of London and former lead for London local government on

:38:50. > :38:55.resilience and Elmer Kelly, Chief Executive of the London borough of

:38:56. > :38:59.Southwark. I want to thank John and his team for all the work they do

:39:00. > :39:02.and I want a picture due to the fantastic response from London

:39:03. > :39:05.borough is including a number of chief executives Sue Barker curtly

:39:06. > :39:08.working at the command centre as well as the Mayor of London and

:39:09. > :39:13.leading figures from a number of councils outside London. I want to

:39:14. > :39:17.thank the army of volunteers who stepped in to provide shelter,

:39:18. > :39:20.sustenance, comfort and practical support. And I want to thank my

:39:21. > :39:24.Community Secretary and the ministers for housing and planning,

:39:25. > :39:27.the Minister for London and the Minister for policing and the Fire

:39:28. > :39:30.Service for the work they've been doing. Mr Speaker there are

:39:31. > :39:34.currently around 600 people working on the site and in the immediate

:39:35. > :39:40.area who are working to provide support to defect is. The Westway

:39:41. > :39:44.sports centre has been transformed into a community hub staffed by 40

:39:45. > :39:48.officials from six Government departments, making sure people have

:39:49. > :39:50.essential documents like driving licences and passports that are

:39:51. > :39:55.fundamental to carrying on with their lives. They've also been

:39:56. > :39:59.joined by experts from organisations such as Transport for London,

:40:00. > :40:06.Citizens Advice and the Red Cross, NHS mental health staff, nurses, and

:40:07. > :40:09.Ed GP, anyone affected by the blaze can walk in and access support they

:40:10. > :40:15.need and so far there have been almost 700 visits to the centre. The

:40:16. > :40:17.Centre on the ground work is supplemented by a victim support

:40:18. > :40:20.unit whose emergency helpline provides a single point of contact

:40:21. > :40:23.for that is the need to do with one double government services in the

:40:24. > :40:29.wake of the disaster. Each family whose home was destroyed as received

:40:30. > :40:32.and is receiving a 5000 down payment from the emergency fund so they can

:40:33. > :40:35.buy food, clothes and other essentials and outreach workers are

:40:36. > :40:39.seeking to make sure everyone gets money they are entitled to. We are

:40:40. > :40:43.also paying all additional adults over 60 in these hassles by the

:40:44. > :40:47.hundred pounds in cash, other cash payments are being paid out by the

:40:48. > :40:50.Council on a discretionary basis, for example to those whose home has

:40:51. > :40:57.been severely impacted but not permanently destroyed. As of midday

:40:58. > :41:01.on Wednesday we had made payments of over ?700,000. It is absolutely

:41:02. > :41:04.essential Mr Speaker that people understand they can keep the money

:41:05. > :41:11.they receive. These grants are not loans and they will not expect to a

:41:12. > :41:15.single penny. Neither are they waiving any legal rights as a result

:41:16. > :41:20.of except this financial health. The payments will be disregarded for

:41:21. > :41:24.means tested welfare benefits, payments, so no one in receipt of

:41:25. > :41:27.benefits will see their benefits cut if they accept emergency support.

:41:28. > :41:31.And I would like to reassure people that we will not use this tragic

:41:32. > :41:36.incident as a reason to carry a greater checks on those involved or

:41:37. > :41:40.on those providing vital information to identify victims or those

:41:41. > :41:44.assisting with the criminal investigation. We will make sure all

:41:45. > :41:49.victims respect of their immigration status will be able to access the

:41:50. > :41:53.services they need including health care and accommodation. In terms of

:41:54. > :41:59.local schools, Kensington Aldridge academy, the school next door to the

:42:00. > :42:01.tower remains closed however all its pupils have been accommodated at

:42:02. > :42:05.other schools in the area. The Department for Education is working

:42:06. > :42:10.with the authorities to ensure children sitting their GCSEs receive

:42:11. > :42:12.an appropriate exam dispensation and specialist counselling has been

:42:13. > :42:20.offered to local school children and teachers affect that by the fire.

:42:21. > :42:24.Turning to rehousing, 151 homes were destroyed in the fire, most in the

:42:25. > :42:29.tower itself but also several in the immediate vicinity. All those who

:42:30. > :42:31.have lost their homes have been offered emergency hotel

:42:32. > :42:36.accommodation and all will be offered rehousing within three

:42:37. > :42:40.weeks. Already 164 suitable properties have identified and they

:42:41. > :42:44.are being checked and made ready for people to move into. In the longer

:42:45. > :42:49.term everyone who sold was destroyed for the guaranteed a new home on the

:42:50. > :42:54.same terms as the one they lost. 68 of those will be in a brand-new

:42:55. > :42:57.low-rise block that has just been built by Arkley homes, the developer

:42:58. > :43:03.has generously offered to turn over the entire block at cost price,

:43:04. > :43:08.contractors are on site now working 24 - seven so that the first

:43:09. > :43:13.families can move in the summer. But the wider cord and more are -- more

:43:14. > :43:17.homes were damaged by smoke or water or have lost gas, heating or hot

:43:18. > :43:21.water, emergency hotel accommodation is available for anyone who does not

:43:22. > :43:26.want to remain in a damaged property and over 100 hotel rooms have

:43:27. > :43:30.already been provided. We are also putting in place practical support

:43:31. > :43:34.to help accelerate necessary repairs and yesterday drew on expertise from

:43:35. > :43:38.the army to assist with this. Some survivors said they want to leave

:43:39. > :43:41.the local area and we will of course support that and help them find a

:43:42. > :43:46.home elsewhere. But I want to be absolutely clear, nobody is being

:43:47. > :43:50.forced to move software they don't want to go. And if any honourable

:43:51. > :43:54.member thinks they know of anyone being treated in this way, they

:43:55. > :43:59.should contact my office in Downing Street with the details. Mr Speaker,

:44:00. > :44:03.as the scale of the tragedy became clear we quickly decided there had

:44:04. > :44:07.to be an independent public inquiry. As I said to the house yesterday it

:44:08. > :44:11.will be chaired by a judge to get to the truth about what happened and

:44:12. > :44:15.who was responsible. And to provide justice for the victims and their

:44:16. > :44:20.families who suffered so terribly. All those with an interest including

:44:21. > :44:26.survivors and fit is families will be consulted about the terms of

:44:27. > :44:29.reference and we will pay for legal representation for those affected.

:44:30. > :44:33.Listing two survivors last night it also became clear that they want

:44:34. > :44:36.support to come together as a group to have their voices heard and the

:44:37. > :44:40.government will play its part in helping them to do so. The stress

:44:41. > :44:45.Speaker for too long residence at an overlooked and it bought, we will

:44:46. > :44:48.ensure they are involved in every step of this process. No stone will

:44:49. > :44:53.be left unturned in this inquiry and for any guilty party, there will be

:44:54. > :44:58.no fur to hide. I'm also clear we cannot wait for ages to learn the

:44:59. > :45:01.immediate lessons, and so I expect chair of the inquiry will want to

:45:02. > :45:07.produce an interim report as early as possible. Mr Speaker and no many

:45:08. > :45:09.others living in tall residential buildings will have concerns about

:45:10. > :45:15.their safety after what happened at Grenfell Tower. All social landlords

:45:16. > :45:18.have been in strut to carry out additional fire safety checks on

:45:19. > :45:21.tower blocks and ensure the appropriate safety response measures

:45:22. > :45:27.are in place of this is being done in crop and local Fire And Rescue

:45:28. > :45:29.Services. We also taken steps to make private landlords aware and

:45:30. > :45:34.made are checking facilities available to them for free. The

:45:35. > :45:39.house should of course be careful and speculating what caused this

:45:40. > :45:42.fire, but as a precaution, the government has arranged to test

:45:43. > :45:46.cladding in all relevant tower blocks. Mr Speaker, shortly before I

:45:47. > :45:50.came to the chamber I was informed that a number of these tests have

:45:51. > :45:55.come back as combustible. The relevant local authorities and Fire

:45:56. > :45:59.Services have been informed and as I speak, they aren't taking all

:46:00. > :46:00.possible steps to insure buildings are safe and to inform affected

:46:01. > :46:21.residents. Mr Speaker, we can test over 100

:46:22. > :46:26.buildings a day and the results come within hours. I urge any landlord

:46:27. > :46:30.who owns a building of this kind to send samples for testing as soon as

:46:31. > :46:35.possible. Any results will be communicated immediately to local

:46:36. > :46:37.authorities and Fire Services. Landlords have a legal obligation to

:46:38. > :46:40.provide safe buildings and where they cannot do that we expect

:46:41. > :46:47.automotive accommodation to be provided. We cannot and will not ask

:46:48. > :46:50.people to live in unsafe homes. Mr Speaker, it is clear the Royal

:46:51. > :46:57.Borough of Kensington and Josie were not able to start on the tragedy. --

:46:58. > :47:04.cope with the tragedy, so we will also consider a new disaster task

:47:05. > :47:08.force that can help in times of emergency. Finally, we must learn

:47:09. > :47:10.some of the lessons of this and previous disasters where bereaved

:47:11. > :47:14.families have not had the support they need, so we will introduce an

:47:15. > :47:22.independent public advocate for public disasters, a strong, and

:47:23. > :47:28.supporting them at inquests and enquiries. In the past week, a lot

:47:29. > :47:33.of remarkable people have gone above and beyond to help deal with the

:47:34. > :47:38.fire and its aftermath. First and foremost of course are the

:47:39. > :47:43.incredible men and women of the emergency services who did so much

:47:44. > :47:49.to serve so many lives. I can't imagine the kind of bravery it takes

:47:50. > :47:52.to run into a building that is burning and head upstairs when any

:47:53. > :47:57.normal person would head for the exits. We have also seen sterling

:47:58. > :48:00.work from teachers, nurses, staff in various local authorities, civil

:48:01. > :48:03.servants doing all they can to help. We have seen incredible acts of

:48:04. > :48:07.generosity from private businesses and we have seen the people of this

:48:08. > :48:11.great country stepping up to help in anyway they can, donating money,

:48:12. > :48:16.clothes come the toys and food, volunteering their time and so much

:48:17. > :48:19.more. But, above all, I want to pay tribute to the people of Kensington.

:48:20. > :48:23.They have opened their hearts and homes to people affected by the

:48:24. > :48:27.fire, coming together and showing what a real community looks like.

:48:28. > :48:31.The selfless actions of local people and the courage and resilience of

:48:32. > :48:38.the survivors should give us all pause for thought. For, right now,

:48:39. > :48:41.our focus is on supporting the victims, finding homes for those

:48:42. > :48:46.made homeless and making sure this country's housing stock is as safe

:48:47. > :48:51.as possible. But as we move forwards, so we must also recognise

:48:52. > :48:54.that for too long in this country and the governments of both colours

:48:55. > :48:57.recently haven't given enough attention to social housing, and

:48:58. > :49:01.this itself is actually a symptom of a more fundamental issue. Mr

:49:02. > :49:04.Speaker, it shouldn't take a disaster of this kind for us to

:49:05. > :49:09.remember that there are people in Britain today living lives that are

:49:10. > :49:12.so far removed that many here in Westminster enjoy, that in this

:49:13. > :49:16.tower just a few miles from the Houses of Parliament in the heart of

:49:17. > :49:19.our great city can people live a fundamentally different life do not

:49:20. > :49:23.feel the state works for them and are therefore mistrustful of it. So,

:49:24. > :49:27.long after the TV cameras have gone and the world has moved on, let the

:49:28. > :49:32.legacy of this awful tragedy be that we resolve never to forget these

:49:33. > :49:35.people, and instead the gear our policies and thinking towards making

:49:36. > :49:39.their lives better and bringing them into the political process. It is

:49:40. > :49:42.our job as a government and I believe as a parliament to show that

:49:43. > :49:46.we are listening and we will stand up for them, and that is what I am

:49:47. > :49:51.determined we should do, and I commend the statement to the house.

:49:52. > :49:57.The Leader of the Opposition, Mr Jeremy Corbyn. Thank you, Mr

:49:58. > :50:00.Speaker, and I acknowledge the Prime Minister's apologies for the very

:50:01. > :50:04.late arrival of her statement to my office and I understand the reasons

:50:05. > :50:09.for it. I met with the survivors of Grenfell Tower, as have a number of

:50:10. > :50:11.colleagues in the house, and very inspiring volunteers coordinating so

:50:12. > :50:15.much of the relief effort for families that have lost so much.

:50:16. > :50:19.There is grave, there is anger and the resource a great solidarity in

:50:20. > :50:23.that community, and I hope the whole house will join with me in

:50:24. > :50:26.commending community spirit and public support, which helped so many

:50:27. > :50:31.traumatised families and the amazing response of so many local people and

:50:32. > :50:36.faith groups who rushed to the scene to give clothing, to give food, to

:50:37. > :50:39.give help and to provide a sort of online restaurants are just about

:50:40. > :50:44.anybody who was helping with the disaster relief. Our love,

:50:45. > :50:48.condolences and solidarity goes out to those families again today, and

:50:49. > :50:52.in what will be the very difficult days and weeks ahead, and for many,

:50:53. > :50:58.a lifetime will be reliving the trauma of that dreadful night. They

:50:59. > :51:02.were, as the Prime Minister said yesterday, let down, both in the

:51:03. > :51:06.immediate aftermath, and so cruelly beforehand, and the public enquiry

:51:07. > :51:14.must establish the extent, and by whom. At least 79 people are dead.

:51:15. > :51:17.It is both a tragedy and an outrage, because every single one of those

:51:18. > :51:23.deaths could and should have been avoided. The Grenfell Tower

:51:24. > :51:28.residents themselves have raised concerns about the lack of fire

:51:29. > :51:33.safety in the block. The Grenfell action group had warned, and I

:51:34. > :51:40.quote, it is a truly terrifying thought that the Grenfell action

:51:41. > :51:44.group firmly believe that only a catastrophic event will expose the

:51:45. > :51:48.ineptitude and incompetence of our landlord, the Kensington and Chelsea

:51:49. > :51:52.tenant management organisation. The Prime Minister said it is right that

:51:53. > :51:59.the CEO of Kensington and Chelsea council has now resigned. It may be,

:52:00. > :52:01.but why aren't the political leaders of Kensington and Chelsea taking

:52:02. > :52:07.responsibility as well for this whole dreadful event? Is the

:52:08. > :52:11.speaker, from Hillsborough to the child sex abuse scandal the Grenfell

:52:12. > :52:16.Tower, the pattern is consistent. Working class people's voices are

:52:17. > :52:21.ignored, their concerns dismissed by those in power. The Grenfell Tower

:52:22. > :52:24.residents and North Kensington community deserve answers, and

:52:25. > :52:28.thousands and thousands of people living in tower blocks around the

:52:29. > :52:33.country need very urgent reassurance. Our very brave

:52:34. > :52:37.firefighters must never have to deal with such horrific incident again.

:52:38. > :52:41.And the Prime Minister is right when she talks about the bravery of

:52:42. > :52:46.firefighters running into a burning building. I have spoken to

:52:47. > :52:50.firefighters on many occasions. But they are overstretched and they are

:52:51. > :52:55.traumatised, traumatised by dealing with London Bridge, traumatised by

:52:56. > :52:58.Grenfell Tower, yet they carry on doing it, overstretched and

:52:59. > :53:05.understaffed. We need to look at the whole issue of the security of our

:53:06. > :53:10.Fire Service. Those of us with over 30 years experience in this house

:53:11. > :53:14.will have struggled as constituency MPs under the pressure generated by

:53:15. > :53:19.an incident of this scale. As I said yesterday, my friend, my honourable

:53:20. > :53:23.friend the member for Kensington, deserves praise for the tireless and

:53:24. > :53:26.diligent way she has stood up for her constituents in the very short

:53:27. > :53:30.time since she was thankfully elected to this house. Her

:53:31. > :53:36.constituents need answers, and the public enquiry must address.

:53:37. > :53:39.Firstly, the appalling failure of the fire alarms at Grenfell Tower,

:53:40. > :53:43.which meant many residents reported they were only alerted to the fire

:53:44. > :53:48.by the screams of their neighbours, or by young Muslim men banging on

:53:49. > :53:52.the door who had broken from prayers in order to try to save lives.

:53:53. > :53:57.Something went catastrophically wrong, which lost life. And whether

:53:58. > :54:03.the advice given to tenants to stay in their homes was correct. And what

:54:04. > :54:09.advice should be given to the people living in the 4000 other tower

:54:10. > :54:13.blocks around this country in the event of similar disaster. Why

:54:14. > :54:17.sprinklers were not installed, and whether they should now be

:54:18. > :54:22.retrofitted into all tower blocks. We need urgent answers to that

:54:23. > :54:25.question. And whether the cladding used was illegal, as the Chancellor

:54:26. > :54:31.has suggested, and whether it should be banned entirely, and why the

:54:32. > :54:35.changes must be urgently made the building regulations. As the Prime

:54:36. > :54:40.Minister indicated in her statement, that this is obviously being

:54:41. > :54:44.urgently addressed. But we also need to address the fire prevention

:54:45. > :54:47.regulations, including the frequency and in force on fire safety checks,

:54:48. > :54:54.because it is my suspicion that many local authorities, strapped for cash

:54:55. > :54:57.after seven years of cuts, have cut back on fire testing, cut back on

:54:58. > :55:04.inspections, because they simply haven't got the staff to do it any

:55:05. > :55:07.more. And whether the tenant management organisations are

:55:08. > :55:12.responsive enough to their tenants, and what greater powers tenants

:55:13. > :55:16.need, both in council, social housing or the private sector, to

:55:17. > :55:23.ensure their own safety. Whether survivors and people evacuated from

:55:24. > :55:27.adjacent properties worth rehoused adequately. The Prime Minister has

:55:28. > :55:33.addressed some of those. I would be interested in her response to those

:55:34. > :55:35.who live nearby and were equally traumatised by the events, and of

:55:36. > :55:39.course they should be rehoused within the borough and I hope there

:55:40. > :55:43.will be no increase in their rent. The enquiry must also address the

:55:44. > :55:46.resources available to the Fire and Rescue Service, and where the

:55:47. > :55:51.response times in the past are adequate for all areas of the

:55:52. > :55:55.country, since the number of awards in which response time targets are

:55:56. > :56:01.not being met has increased tenfold since 2011. Lessons must be learned

:56:02. > :56:05.in the public enquiry, and a disaster that should never have

:56:06. > :56:10.happened must never happen again. The government must delay no longer,

:56:11. > :56:15.and now implement the recommendations of the 2013 enquiry

:56:16. > :56:21.report into the Lakmal house fire. The public enquiry into Grenfell

:56:22. > :56:25.must also establish whether lives could have been saved if those

:56:26. > :56:29.recommendations had been implemented in full, and if the recommendations

:56:30. > :56:35.of the all-party Parliamentary group had been heeded by government. Fire

:56:36. > :56:38.safety measures cannot be left to a postcode lottery. So I asked the

:56:39. > :56:43.government to make available emergency funds as my honourable

:56:44. > :56:48.friend the member for Leeds West raised yesterday, so that councils

:56:49. > :56:52.can carry out immediate fire safety checks and install sprinklers, and

:56:53. > :56:57.the timetable for that be made known to residents. There is obviously a

:56:58. > :57:02.huge cost involved in removing Andrey cladding blocks that are

:57:03. > :57:08.found to have flammable materials included in them. That money must be

:57:09. > :57:13.made available immediately, because it is a huge job of work. And when

:57:14. > :57:17.the Prime Minister says that those people who are in danger must be

:57:18. > :57:21.moved out of their properties, this is a massive undertaking, and a huge

:57:22. > :57:26.focus of government resources will have to go into it. Will the Prime

:57:27. > :57:29.Minister also ensure that the counselling and mental health

:57:30. > :57:32.services which you refer to as going on at the Westway sports centre now

:57:33. > :57:37.are available to all the residents, both at Grenfell Tower, and of the

:57:38. > :57:42.remaining areas around there, and those that witnessed it on the

:57:43. > :57:46.Lancaster West estate, including those in the emergency services, who

:57:47. > :57:49.have been through such trauma over the last few days? Because

:57:50. > :57:53.counselling mental health services are important in the days and weeks

:57:54. > :57:58.after the tragedy, but they have to go on for a very long time. This

:57:59. > :58:02.trauma doesn't end a few days afterwards. Mr Speaker, the public

:58:03. > :58:05.enquiry must report as soon as possible, and changes that can and

:58:06. > :58:11.should have been made must now be made without delay. But we have to

:58:12. > :58:16.be aware that this has been a wake-up call to the whole country.

:58:17. > :58:21.The fire at Grenfell Tower has taken the lives of people who should be

:58:22. > :58:25.with us and alive and happy today. Residents of tower blocks all over

:58:26. > :58:32.the country are concerned, worried and frightened for their own safety.

:58:33. > :58:35.What we need is a step change in our attitude towards housing in this

:58:36. > :58:40.country, to deal with the permanent housing crisis that so many of our

:58:41. > :58:43.constituents and residents face, and we need government intervention to

:58:44. > :58:49.support local authorities in bringing about safe solutions to the

:58:50. > :58:54.housing crisis, so that this tragedy can at least change our attitudes,

:58:55. > :58:57.and that lycee, as a country, we are seriously going to address the

:58:58. > :59:01.housing situation that many people face. Those people have died, they

:59:02. > :59:07.will never come back. We have to learn those lessons to make sure

:59:08. > :59:12.this tragedy is a turning point in our whole attitude, and never again

:59:13. > :59:19.do people die needlessly in a towering Inferno, living in poverty,

:59:20. > :59:23.surrounded by a sea of prosperity. Thank you, Mr Speaker. May I first

:59:24. > :59:26.of all join the Leader of the Opposition in commending the work of

:59:27. > :59:30.his new honourable friend, the member for Kensington. I am sure we

:59:31. > :59:34.can all remember our first few days as a member of Parliament and

:59:35. > :59:38.getting to grips with it. To having to deal with a disaster and tragedy

:59:39. > :59:41.of this sort in your constituency so early on must have been very

:59:42. > :59:47.difficult, but I commend the honourable lady for the work that

:59:48. > :59:51.she has done. The right honourable gentleman raised a number of issues,

:59:52. > :59:55.many of which will be matters for the enquiry to get to grips with, so

:59:56. > :59:59.the responsibility in relation to this issue, some of the issues

:00:00. > :00:05.around for example the advice given by the Fire Service, all of these

:00:06. > :00:09.will be issues that the enquiry would I expect address, and as I

:00:10. > :00:13.said in my statement, we want to ensure we are able to provide

:00:14. > :00:18.justice to the victims and survivors of this terrible tragedy that has

:00:19. > :00:25.taken place. And I do expect that the chair of the enquiry will

:00:26. > :00:28.produce an interim report, so that we see early lessons. It is

:00:29. > :00:31.important that as soon as we know there is anything that needs to be

:00:32. > :00:33.learned and addressed and acted on, that we know that as soon as the one

:00:34. > :00:47.we take action as soon as possible. He referred to a coroners report in

:00:48. > :00:51.2013, all the advice from that inquiry has been acted upon and I

:00:52. > :00:57.think it's important to recognise that coroner, the inquiry coroner

:00:58. > :01:00.did not propose any change to the building regulations, there were

:01:01. > :01:03.issues about the guidance to building regulations but there were

:01:04. > :01:09.other issues raised and all of these have the acted on. On the question

:01:10. > :01:13.of rehousing, we will be offering rehousing in the borough or in

:01:14. > :01:19.neighbouring boroughs, we have, as I said, got a significant number of

:01:20. > :01:23.properties, 164 already identified and currently being looked at. A

:01:24. > :01:28.significant number of people have been assessed for housing needs,

:01:29. > :01:31.some offered housing, it's up to them whether they accept that or

:01:32. > :01:37.whether other properties will need to be offered to them but that

:01:38. > :01:43.process is in hand and I have said that three-week commitment people

:01:44. > :01:45.will be rehoused within three weeks. The tenant management organisation

:01:46. > :01:50.which the leader of the Opposition mentioned is an issue that has come

:01:51. > :01:54.across loud and clear to me from my conversations with local residents.

:01:55. > :01:57.One of the first actions of the new Chief Executive of Kensington

:01:58. > :02:00.Council will be to look at issues around the tenant manner rent

:02:01. > :02:08.organisation and any action needs to be taken at a macro the tenant

:02:09. > :02:11.management organisation. He referred to other instances, Hillsborough and

:02:12. > :02:14.the child sexual abuse inquiry, I was pleased to be able to work with

:02:15. > :02:18.families from Hillsborough, they should have had justice at a far

:02:19. > :02:23.earlier stage but of course the issues are ongoing in terms of the

:02:24. > :02:27.Crown Prosecution Service looking at any potential criminal

:02:28. > :02:33.investigation, criminal charges but we have been able to provide the

:02:34. > :02:36.Hillsborough families with an opportunity for the truth for them

:02:37. > :02:39.to know the truth of what happened to their loved ones and for the

:02:40. > :02:43.public to know the truth of Hillsborough. I was also pleased to

:02:44. > :02:49.set up the child sexual abuse inquiry because as I said when I set

:02:50. > :02:52.up that inquiry, for too long people made assumptions about certain

:02:53. > :02:55.people in our society and how they should be treated and those

:02:56. > :03:02.assumptions are wrong and we need to dig into that and find out why it

:03:03. > :03:05.happened and change it. I am very keen to accommodate the level of

:03:06. > :03:09.interest in this extraordinarily important and great subject. I

:03:10. > :03:16.appeal to colleagues to help me to help them, a premium upon brevity, I

:03:17. > :03:21.feel sure now it will be exemplified by Mr Iain Duncan Smith. May I

:03:22. > :03:26.welcome the prime ministers statement and the actions she said

:03:27. > :03:29.she will take the government will take under hearts and prayers go out

:03:30. > :03:33.to those who suffered so terribly and continue to suffer in the days

:03:34. > :03:38.that come. Can I ask are in the course of the public inquiry to add

:03:39. > :03:44.to one further agreement, to look at whether or not this whole processes

:03:45. > :03:48.of retrofitting these old tower blocks is in fact viable at all and

:03:49. > :03:54.further or not there is a better way to both house and support tenants in

:03:55. > :03:57.these areas without the use of many of these incredibly badly designed

:03:58. > :04:02.and very faulty tower blocks and could she asked the public inquiry

:04:03. > :04:06.to look carefully whether it's feasible for us now to look at

:04:07. > :04:10.bringing some of these down and improving water family friendly

:04:11. > :04:16.housing? Ungrateful to my right honourable friend for his remarks,

:04:17. > :04:21.he is suggesting the inquiry should in fact go a great tool further than

:04:22. > :04:28.looking into this particular instance. I think what's important

:04:29. > :04:30.and we will ensure that the survivors and local residents have

:04:31. > :04:35.an input to the terms of reference for this inquiry to make sure it is

:04:36. > :04:38.an inquiry they can have confidence in and they know will produce the

:04:39. > :04:43.results they need and the Justice they need. I think we need to

:04:44. > :04:47.ensure, I will reflect on his comments but I think it's important

:04:48. > :04:50.primarily that the local residents feel confidence in the terms of

:04:51. > :04:56.reference and that it will get to the truth as they needed. Mr Iain

:04:57. > :05:02.Latchford. Thank you, Mr Speaker I know we all welcome the opportunity

:05:03. > :05:05.of this statement from the Prime Minister and I think we can all

:05:06. > :05:11.reflect on the seems that we will go to last week, horror of those living

:05:12. > :05:14.in the tower block, the suffering and pain they must have gone

:05:15. > :05:18.through, the agony of the fire spread through that whole thing and

:05:19. > :05:23.I want to thank the members of the emergency services, in this and

:05:24. > :05:26.other incidents we have seen over the past few weeks, putting their

:05:27. > :05:30.lives on the line, we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude. We on

:05:31. > :05:35.these benches want to work with the government on these matters, these,

:05:36. > :05:39.this incident last week was a defining moment in the evolution of

:05:40. > :05:42.our society, can I say to the Prime Minister respectfully, she has

:05:43. > :05:47.apologised to the Leader of the Opposition for the short notice but

:05:48. > :05:49.it should be to the third party and all parties represented in this

:05:50. > :05:54.house that they should be adequate recession. The Prime Minister in her

:05:55. > :05:59.statement said the initial period was compounded the facts support on

:06:00. > :06:03.the ground and the Angel ours wasn't good enough, can I ask through the

:06:04. > :06:07.inquiry if there are recommendations that are made that changes must be

:06:08. > :06:19.made that the government will accept those? I think secondly, on the ?5

:06:20. > :06:22.million given to the emergency fund if this is not sufficiently

:06:23. > :06:26.government commit to doing what it needs to do in terms of financial

:06:27. > :06:30.resources? I welcome the fact the prime ministers says the new housing

:06:31. > :06:33.block built by the Department will be made available for some families

:06:34. > :06:37.and she talks about families moving over the summer. Could she be more

:06:38. > :06:41.specific when this will happen and can we make sure those families who

:06:42. > :06:44.wish to live in the local area will have that commitment that housing

:06:45. > :06:50.will be available and it will be done on a basis for consultation and

:06:51. > :06:54.at the first offer is not acceptable there will be alternatives put in

:06:55. > :06:58.place. Will the Prime Minister agree the public inquiry should be

:06:59. > :07:02.empowered to consider all steps that were not taken leading up to and

:07:03. > :07:06.contributing to the incident, all of those with a legitimate interest

:07:07. > :07:11.must be able to participate, this has to include burrito families,

:07:12. > :07:16.survivors as well as individuals and organisations with an interest such

:07:17. > :07:21.as the residents campaign and local representative organisations. This

:07:22. > :07:25.needs to be about Parliament recognising the significance of what

:07:26. > :07:28.happened here, we can never be as a country in this position again and I

:07:29. > :07:32.welcome the report is a Prime Minister made a bad social housing.

:07:33. > :07:38.Let's make sure social housing is something we invest in, I grew up in

:07:39. > :07:42.a social house, I remember fondly my childhood and I want people but have

:07:43. > :07:48.the same opportunities we had to have social housing we can all be

:07:49. > :07:51.proud of. Thank you Mr Speaker and perhaps I could take this

:07:52. > :07:55.opportunity in responding to the honourable gentleman to make sure

:07:56. > :07:59.the testing facilities I referred to are open to the devolved

:08:00. > :08:01.administrations as well so I would encourage obviously within devolved

:08:02. > :08:07.administrations, anyone who has any old things of this sort to send some

:08:08. > :08:12.samples in so they can be tested. The honourable gentleman asked about

:08:13. > :08:15.the ?5 million fund, more money will be made available if necessary,

:08:16. > :08:19.something like 700,000 has already been paid out and further will be

:08:20. > :08:24.paid out but we will be looking at that over time. As regards the

:08:25. > :08:27.Berkeley homes development, planning conditions which were attached to

:08:28. > :08:33.that development have been relaxed to enable work to take place over

:08:34. > :08:36.longer hours so work can be speeded up, the current expectation is these

:08:37. > :08:41.could be available by the end of July but I say that, with that

:08:42. > :08:45.caveat, and I am sure he will recognise its dependent on the work

:08:46. > :08:51.being completed. He asked about issues around the inquiry. It is

:08:52. > :08:55.absolutely crucial that what the inquiry does is look at how this

:08:56. > :08:59.happened and part of that will be looking at what led up to the fire,

:09:00. > :09:03.the response to the fire, the immediate response and the

:09:04. > :09:08.aftermath, we need to know why this happened and who was responsible for

:09:09. > :09:11.it. But of course, the judge who will chair of the inquiry will have

:09:12. > :09:18.a role in determining how that inquiry is handled in terms of the

:09:19. > :09:23.witnesses he wishes to take and so forth but as I said, I am very clear

:09:24. > :09:27.we need to ensure this is an inquiry e-book can have full confidence and

:09:28. > :09:31.that's why I want to see residents being involved in setting the terms

:09:32. > :09:40.of reference so they know it's an inquiry that will meet their needs.

:09:41. > :09:46.Will the Prime Minister encourage local authorities to follow the lead

:09:47. > :09:48.set by an council with an immediate reinspection of programmes of

:09:49. > :09:52.investment and safety measures to be guided by the Fire Service and to

:09:53. > :09:57.include sprinklers for these are needed? Can I commend and thank my

:09:58. > :10:01.read on a bull friend for drawing that to our attention, I commend

:10:02. > :10:10.Barnet Council for the action they have taken, I hope every local

:10:11. > :10:14.authority, has been asked by DCLG to undertake these tests and ensure

:10:15. > :10:22.they are ensuring the safety of the properties on which they are

:10:23. > :10:25.accommodating people. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I thank the Prime Minister

:10:26. > :10:32.for her kind words, words which must be followed by deeds. Speaking on

:10:33. > :10:37.behalf of a traumatised and frightened community who have little

:10:38. > :10:41.trust in authority, early reports suggest that there may have been

:10:42. > :10:45.issues with fire safety audits and fire regulations were not

:10:46. > :10:49.sufficiently robust. While we wait for the results of the inquiry which

:10:50. > :10:53.I hope won't be too long will the Prime Minister commit to adequate

:10:54. > :10:58.funds to enable emergency services and particularly the London Fire

:10:59. > :11:01.Brigade to be fully funded to carry out this work and reverse the cuts

:11:02. > :11:04.to the funding of Fire Services that have made their lives so difficult?

:11:05. > :11:11.These people have quite literally our lives in their hands, in short,

:11:12. > :11:19.where is the funding? The Prime Minister. When I spoke to the

:11:20. > :11:23.emergency services, obviously my first visit to Kensington, one of

:11:24. > :11:26.the challenges I gave to them was today have the resources they needed

:11:27. > :11:35.to be able to do the job they are doing and they assured me that he

:11:36. > :11:38.did. Obviously the question... The question of what the inquiry will

:11:39. > :11:43.look into in relation to this matter, they will obviously have to

:11:44. > :11:48.look at, as I've just said, at the question of how this was possible

:11:49. > :11:52.but this could happen, the issue around, I am sure the inquiry will

:11:53. > :11:55.look at the issue around tests that took place on the tower and the

:11:56. > :12:01.adequacy of those tests and the adequacy of any response to those

:12:02. > :12:04.issues. I want the inquiry to find these things out as soon as possible

:12:05. > :12:07.because that could have indications for other local authorities and

:12:08. > :12:12.other blogs around the country and we want to insure's people safety.

:12:13. > :12:14.Perhaps I should be the first person publicly to congratulate the

:12:15. > :12:18.honourable lady on her election to the house and on being albeit, in

:12:19. > :12:22.the most grave and traumatic circumstances, the first newly

:12:23. > :12:27.elected member to put a question in this chamber, she's done so to the

:12:28. > :12:31.Prime Minister, I congratulate the Prime Minister of her contribution.

:12:32. > :12:35.Zac Goldsmith. Thank you Mr Speaker, I want to thank the Prime Minister

:12:36. > :12:41.for a statement and the reassurance she provided and to thank my own two

:12:42. > :12:46.Buhriz for conducting urgent reviews and providing reassurance to

:12:47. > :12:50.residents. There will be people in speech -- positions of authority who

:12:51. > :12:54.will probably be fearing the indications of a proper public

:12:55. > :12:58.inquiry and for the same reason there are likely to be people in the

:12:59. > :13:02.community affected who fear their won't as a result be a full public

:13:03. > :13:05.inquiry, that scepticism will be there for obvious reasons so I want

:13:06. > :13:09.to ask the Prime Minister if she's a little bit more about the terms of

:13:10. > :13:11.reference in the inquiry and explain how local residents will have

:13:12. > :13:17.meaningful input into how they are set. I fully recognise the picture

:13:18. > :13:22.that my honourable friend has set out in relation to the inquiry,

:13:23. > :13:26.that's why I think it's important it is judge lead, the judge will be

:13:27. > :13:29.completely independent, it will be up to them to determine the

:13:30. > :13:33.witnesses called and how they will manage the inquiry and I think this

:13:34. > :13:38.is very important because we want people to have the confidence of

:13:39. > :13:42.knowing that offend the inquiry reports, it will be bringing the

:13:43. > :13:47.troops out. We also want people to have the confidence to know that

:13:48. > :13:52.actions that arise as the result of the indications, the findings of

:13:53. > :13:58.that inquiry, will be taken and those who are responsible will be

:13:59. > :14:02.held to account. In relation to the terms of reference, residents will

:14:03. > :14:06.be involved. We are in the process at the moment of looking how it is

:14:07. > :14:09.possible to do that, the judge leading the inquiry will themselves

:14:10. > :14:14.want to reflect on how they want to speak with residents, to hear from

:14:15. > :14:18.residents but I think the message I had from residents on being able to

:14:19. > :14:22.bring a survivors group together as a single voice is a very important

:14:23. > :14:28.one and would be helpful in this regard. Harriet Harmen. I thank the

:14:29. > :14:31.Prime Minister for her statement, I think the news she has given the

:14:32. > :14:37.house today that the cladding was indeed combustible and having been

:14:38. > :14:43.tested it showed it was combustible is chilling news and will be

:14:44. > :14:46.horrifying confirmation of what people, what we also on our TV

:14:47. > :14:52.screens but it will be even more fright wing for those, I mean there

:14:53. > :14:56.are 58 tower blocks in my constituency, thousands all around

:14:57. > :15:01.the country. Can I suggest as Prime Minister and she gets a grip on this

:15:02. > :15:06.personally, right away, and what she does is... I am just going to make a

:15:07. > :15:11.suggestion, if I may, at what she'd is is use Cobra too call together

:15:12. > :15:16.and require all local authorities within a certain time frame to check

:15:17. > :15:21.the cladding on every one of the tower blocks. If she has done that,

:15:22. > :15:26.and I look forward to hearing that and look forward to hearing the

:15:27. > :15:30.timescale, so to call together all local authorities, to have a

:15:31. > :15:36.requirement on them to check every cladding on every tower block, to

:15:37. > :15:39.give them the resources to do that inspection within a certain

:15:40. > :15:46.timescale, to commit the resources to replace the cladding within a

:15:47. > :15:50.certain timescale for others find it is combustible, I think if that is

:15:51. > :15:54.exactly what Cobra should do and it's not good enough to congratulate

:15:55. > :16:02.or encourage other councils, she must take a grip on it personally,

:16:03. > :16:05.she said... She said the previous coroners inquest findings had been

:16:06. > :16:12.acted on but I would tell her they have not. The coroner in 2013 said

:16:13. > :16:17.those deaths were avoidable, they should have been sprinklers, you

:16:18. > :16:21.should have been change in the fire instructions, the should be greater

:16:22. > :16:25.supervision of contracts and fire inspection, she said it was an

:16:26. > :16:29.unimaginable tragedy and that those deaths should not have happened.

:16:30. > :16:35.They would not have happened if the government had acted on the previous

:16:36. > :16:41.coroners inquest rulings. Thank you. Prime Minister.

:16:42. > :16:47.Can I said to the right honourable lady would I said in my statement,

:16:48. > :16:50.that local authorities had been invited to send in samples of

:16:51. > :16:54.cladding from similar buildings. They have done those and some of

:16:55. > :16:58.those samples had been found to be combustible. There was in relation

:16:59. > :17:04.to that testing that I use the term combustible. Because we had taken,

:17:05. > :17:07.as the right honourable lady had suggested, we had taken the

:17:08. > :17:11.precautionary measure immediately of asking all local authorities to go

:17:12. > :17:18.out there, to identify blocks with similar cladding, and to take

:17:19. > :17:20.measures, together with their local Fire And Rescue Services, to ensure

:17:21. > :17:26.that people within those buildings were safe. Part of that process has

:17:27. > :17:29.been about the testing, we stand ready to continue to test for all

:17:30. > :17:38.local authorities who wish to send samples. The description of the

:17:39. > :17:43.coroners report from Lakmal house, -- from lack and all house, the not

:17:44. > :17:49.say there should be sprinklers in everyone of these properties -- from

:17:50. > :17:54.Lakanal House. What underpinned that she was saying was the necessity of

:17:55. > :17:58.people living in similar blocks are able to feel reassured about their

:17:59. > :18:01.safety. We have taken these steps, local authorities have been working

:18:02. > :18:07.with Fire And Rescue Services, we are now going back after the results

:18:08. > :18:14.of these tests of cladding are being given back to local authorities,

:18:15. > :18:18.they are immediately acting. There is a number of steps they are taking

:18:19. > :18:25.and we expect them to be taken. Sir Richard Bacon. Mr Speaker, in recent

:18:26. > :18:27.years London has seen many high-quality high-rises being built,

:18:28. > :18:33.often financed with foreign money and then left empty for years,

:18:34. > :18:37.sometimes with the kitchens cling filmed and pristine. While we all

:18:38. > :18:42.understand there are occasions when a landlord will need to leave an

:18:43. > :18:47.apartment empty from time to time, when brand-new properties are left

:18:48. > :18:51.empty for years, does the Prime Minister think it is right to

:18:52. > :18:55.discuss with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, changing the taxation

:18:56. > :19:01.system so that as in New York City these people face punitive taxation.

:19:02. > :19:06.My honourable friend raises an interesting point. I understand in

:19:07. > :19:10.fact the number of empty homes is actually at low levels at the

:19:11. > :19:13.moment, and of course we always look to see what we can do. All we want

:19:14. > :19:16.to ensure is that people are housed and that properties are being used

:19:17. > :19:23.for the purposes of which they have been built. While the rich and poor

:19:24. > :19:26.of the voting regulations are fed from purpose, we should all be

:19:27. > :19:33.protected from fire in our own homes. What assurances can be Prime

:19:34. > :19:38.Minister give that the Lakanal house coroner's recommendations will be

:19:39. > :19:40.done as quickly as possible and that the building regulatory advisory

:19:41. > :19:47.committee, which is to read and has undertaken this work, the recall as

:19:48. > :19:50.a matter of urgency. This could be done in tandem with the public

:19:51. > :19:55.enquiry, doesn't have to wait until the end of it. The honourable

:19:56. > :20:01.gentleman obviously with his background has particular interest

:20:02. > :20:04.in these issues. The coroner's recommendations was not to changing

:20:05. > :20:08.the regulations but the guidance that followed those regulations, and

:20:09. > :20:11.that work is indeed in hand. My understanding is that fire

:20:12. > :20:16.regulations have not been changed since 2006. Obviously a public

:20:17. > :20:21.enquiry will want to look at this is one of the issues they address. The

:20:22. > :20:27.amount of remedial work that may need to be carried out on a limited

:20:28. > :20:32.timescale will possibly mean great pressures fall on the workforce that

:20:33. > :20:35.is capable of carrying out this remedial work. Will the Prime

:20:36. > :20:39.Minister in sure that her colleagues in government make all the necessary

:20:40. > :20:44.funds and resources available if we need to recruit or train further

:20:45. > :20:48.personnel to carry out the remedial work on those blocks that fail the

:20:49. > :20:51.tests? My right honourable friend raises a very important point, we

:20:52. > :20:55.need to ensure that the resources are there in every sense for the

:20:56. > :20:58.remedial work that is necessary, and we are looking at a variety of ways

:20:59. > :21:05.that we can ensure that is indeed the case. Mr David Lambie. All

:21:06. > :21:10.members of this house, across this house, will have mental ward, it

:21:11. > :21:16.employed and want to see flourish young people. My wife principally

:21:17. > :21:21.and I mental ward, employed and encouraged a young woman called

:21:22. > :21:25.Khadija Saye, who lost her life with her mother on the 20th floor of

:21:26. > :21:30.Grenfell Tower. I spoke to her father on Tuesday, and he described

:21:31. > :21:36.with anguish obviously losing his only daughter. And we had a

:21:37. > :21:42.discussion about how he would cope in going to the more treat to visit

:21:43. > :21:49.his daughter in the state that clearly she was in. On their behalf,

:21:50. > :21:54.and all of the people that died, I urge the Prime Minister to say

:21:55. > :21:57.something more about the criminal investigation that was announced

:21:58. > :22:03.last week. She has talked about the public enquiry, but she understands

:22:04. > :22:09.that most people see this as a crime, and they know that rich and

:22:10. > :22:15.powerful organisations get away with crime. Can she say what resources

:22:16. > :22:19.have been brought to bear for the Metropolitan Police, how big are the

:22:20. > :22:22.teams, and why is it that we have not had any commentary about

:22:23. > :22:30.charges, about arrests or about the seizure of documents? Can I first of

:22:31. > :22:35.all say is how sorry I am to hear that the right honourable gentleman

:22:36. > :22:37.has lost somebody, a friend, in this terrible tragedy? There are

:22:38. > :22:40.obviously many people in that position but it brings it home to

:22:41. > :22:45.this house and right into this chamber. He mentioned the issue of

:22:46. > :22:52.treatment, if I could just mention that there is a family bereavement

:22:53. > :22:56.centre now opened, which provides a suitable place in which people can

:22:57. > :23:04.be counselled in relation to this matter. And there is a great deal of

:23:05. > :23:09.thought and care being undertaken in relation to those families who will

:23:10. > :23:15.obviously be wanting to see bodies of those who have died in the fire.

:23:16. > :23:18.This is a very sensitive and difficult matter as I'm sure all

:23:19. > :23:23.members of this house will recognise, and every action is being

:23:24. > :23:25.taken to do this as sensitively and thoughtfully as possible, with the

:23:26. > :23:30.consideration of those who have lost loved ones. In relation to the

:23:31. > :23:34.criminal investigation, the criminal investigation has been opened by the

:23:35. > :23:37.Metropolitan Police. The right honourable gentleman invites me to

:23:38. > :23:41.comment on that in a whole variety of ways, as he knows this is an

:23:42. > :23:43.operational matter for the Metropolitan Police Service the pit

:23:44. > :23:48.is for them to determine any point at which they have evidence which

:23:49. > :23:53.could lead to prosecutions or two charges or prosecutions, we must let

:23:54. > :23:58.the Met do their job. They are doing it carefully and they are doing it

:23:59. > :24:01.properly, but I can assure him and others that they will get to the

:24:02. > :24:04.truth, and they will leave no stone unturned, and if there are charges

:24:05. > :24:15.and prosecutions to be made, then they will be. I attended a group,

:24:16. > :24:19.and understandably heated group discussion with residents of the

:24:20. > :24:25.shadow of Grenfell Tower last evening who seem to be confused in

:24:26. > :24:28.terms of retrofitting of sprinklers. The right honourable lady from

:24:29. > :24:33.Camberwell and pack is also unclear on this. The coroner recommended we

:24:34. > :24:39.should in courage housing providers to retrofit, despite the fact that

:24:40. > :24:43.the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea didn't carry out this ?8.7

:24:44. > :24:49.million refurbishment, they didn't retrofit sprinklers. Does the Prime

:24:50. > :24:53.Minister agree that perhaps now is the time to provide incentives for

:24:54. > :25:00.local authorities to retrofit when carrying out these kind of

:25:01. > :25:03.refurbishments? My honourable friend has rightly identified the

:25:04. > :25:08.recommendation the coroner made, which was that encouragement be

:25:09. > :25:17.given the landlords to retrofit sprinklers. But I would just say the

:25:18. > :25:21.members of this house that the situation is not as easy as perhaps

:25:22. > :25:24.it would appear, in that in not all cases will it be the case that the

:25:25. > :25:27.retrofitting of sprinklers is actually going to be the thing that

:25:28. > :25:33.makes the difference. There is a whole variety of reasons why that

:25:34. > :25:36.may be the case. Some work has been undertaken on testing retrofitting

:25:37. > :25:41.of sprinklers into a number of tower blocks in different parts of the

:25:42. > :25:44.country, because, as I say, it isn't just a question of going in and

:25:45. > :25:48.assuming you will do it and it will automatically work and do the job

:25:49. > :25:51.that is necessary. So it is an issue that is being looked at and

:25:52. > :25:55.continues to be looked at, but it needs to be done so carefully to

:25:56. > :25:58.ensure that any work that is done what is required is generally going

:25:59. > :26:06.to operate in a way to keep people safe. Tom Brake. Mr Speaker, can I

:26:07. > :26:12.express mine and my party's condolences to those affected by

:26:13. > :26:15.this disaster and my praise for the community and emergency services who

:26:16. > :26:21.stepped up in the immediate aftermath, when unfortunately the

:26:22. > :26:24.local authorities failed to do so. Can the Prime Minister confirm when

:26:25. > :26:30.the work on the guidance she referred to on building regs, fire

:26:31. > :26:34.safety, will be completed? Can she confirmed that as much focus will be

:26:35. > :26:37.put on private blocks, perhaps particularly those that were

:26:38. > :26:41.converted from office blocks in the residential blocks, as is being put

:26:42. > :26:45.on local authority and housing association blocks, and can she

:26:46. > :26:49.confirmed that the government will immediately banned the use of

:26:50. > :26:56.combustible materials to insure that this tragedy cannot happen again? On

:26:57. > :27:00.the last point, obviously the building regulations set out the

:27:01. > :27:03.materials that are compliant and those that are noncompliant.

:27:04. > :27:07.Obviously as we go through this process of looking at materials that

:27:08. > :27:10.have been used in various blocks, the question is to whether those

:27:11. > :27:12.indeed comply with the building regulations or not will be one of

:27:13. > :27:16.those that need stability that and of course that will be an issue that

:27:17. > :27:23.will need to be looked at in relation to the public enquiry. The

:27:24. > :27:25.questions in relation to the guidance of the building

:27:26. > :27:32.regulations, that work is ongoing and I would expect it is not just a

:27:33. > :27:35.question of producing something, but that is need to be consultation with

:27:36. > :27:41.various organisations in relation to that matter. That what we need to

:27:42. > :27:46.ensure is that when the Fire Services, when the police have done

:27:47. > :27:50.their investigation, that any action that is necessary immediately as a

:27:51. > :27:53.result of the identification of the cause of the fire, and the reasons

:27:54. > :27:58.why the fire took such cold, which is of course the issue that is of

:27:59. > :28:03.particular concern, then any action that is necessary is taken, and it

:28:04. > :28:06.will be taken. Geoffrey Clifton Brown. My right honourable friend

:28:07. > :28:09.might be interested to know I spent about three hours on Monday quietly

:28:10. > :28:14.walking around the Grenfell Tower area, talking to people. I met

:28:15. > :28:17.traumatised victims, who didn't want to go into the centre is to get

:28:18. > :28:22.help, so clearly people need to go out to them. They were angry that

:28:23. > :28:26.there was no clear housing policy as to when and where they were going to

:28:27. > :28:29.be re-housed, but above all what I found was that there is an enormous

:28:30. > :28:33.amount of work being done by voluntary bodies, all sorts of

:28:34. > :28:37.bodies, but there is a clear lack of coordination as to how these bodies

:28:38. > :28:40.are to move forward together. So can I strongly support what my right

:28:41. > :28:44.honourable friend said this morning that we should establish a

:28:45. > :28:48.high-level government task force that is able to go into a similar

:28:49. > :28:53.sort of disaster, they should be available 24 hours a day, 300s are

:28:54. > :28:58.the five days a year to take over from the immediate Gold Command

:28:59. > :29:05.situation? Can I thank my honourable friend for the feedback he has

:29:06. > :29:09.provided to ministers in relation to the conversations he had. He is

:29:10. > :29:12.absolutely right, the point has been made to key workers that they need

:29:13. > :29:14.to go out to see people to make sure people know what is available to

:29:15. > :29:20.them, rather than just expecting people to come into the centre. I

:29:21. > :29:23.can assure him that we are looking actively at what further resilience

:29:24. > :29:27.we can put into the system by establishing the sort of task force

:29:28. > :29:30.he and I have both spoken about that will be available, should, I mean,

:29:31. > :29:34.none of us want to see a second chance like this happen again, but

:29:35. > :29:39.that we ensure there is full resilience where disasters take

:29:40. > :29:44.place. Hilary Benn. Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. While many of the

:29:45. > :29:47.questions that those affected by the disaster will want answers to will

:29:48. > :29:49.have to wait the outcome of the enquiry, there is one factual

:29:50. > :29:55.question that surely it is possible to answer now. Was cladding of the

:29:56. > :29:59.type used in Grenfell Tower compliant with the fire safety and

:30:00. > :30:08.building regulations applicable at the time when the refurbishment was

:30:09. > :30:13.undertaken, yes or no? My understanding is the Fire Service

:30:14. > :30:16.and the building research establishment have obviously, and B

:30:17. > :30:20.are either were there on the scene very early to look at this issue.

:30:21. > :30:25.They have been identifying the cause of the fire and any contributory

:30:26. > :30:29.factors to the fire. They have been looking at the cause of the fire and

:30:30. > :30:33.any contributory factors, they are testing the cladding on the

:30:34. > :30:36.building, and they expect to make the results of this public in the

:30:37. > :30:51.next I think 48 hours. Anne-Marie Trevelyan. Thank you Mr

:30:52. > :30:54.Speaker, can my honourable friend confirmed that firefighters who

:30:55. > :30:58.attended this traumatic scene will get the psychological support they

:30:59. > :31:04.receive in the time ahead and would she commit telling us how that will

:31:05. > :31:07.be set up for them? My honourable friend has raised an important issue

:31:08. > :31:11.which the leader of the Opposition also touched on and I can confirm

:31:12. > :31:18.that support and counselling will be available and there will be further

:31:19. > :31:21.up dates to the house on the response to the Grenfell Tower fire

:31:22. > :31:25.and that will be an issue to be included. Yvette Cooper. Further to

:31:26. > :31:31.the previous question the cladding on the tower is a standard rubber

:31:32. > :31:34.that is available for sale, I don't understand why the Prime Minister

:31:35. > :31:39.cannot tell us whether that product is compliant with building

:31:40. > :31:43.regulations for eight tower that is the site. Why can she not tell us

:31:44. > :31:50.the answer and can she also confirmed the building regulations

:31:51. > :31:57.advisory committee that should be looking at part B of the fire

:31:58. > :32:03.regulations, has not actually meant to see how they could be improved. I

:32:04. > :32:08.will add to the answer that I gave to the right and noble gentleman

:32:09. > :32:11.previously, I ask honourable members to remember that there is a criminal

:32:12. > :32:18.investigation taking place in relation to this matter. The

:32:19. > :32:20.testing, it isn't... The testing of the material used is being

:32:21. > :32:29.undertaken and a statement will be made by the police and the Fire

:32:30. > :32:38.Service within the next... James cleverly. Thank you Mr Speaker.

:32:39. > :32:47.There are a number of multi agency plans for things like mass shelter,

:32:48. > :32:52.mass... Can we confirm that these plans were fully implemented and can

:32:53. > :32:57.we ensure what lessons we work through the inquiry process are fed

:32:58. > :33:03.back into the resilience Forum in London and around the country to

:33:04. > :33:06.insure those lessons are promptly implemented? I thank my honourable

:33:07. > :33:09.friend for his question, obviously with his ex-errands when he was on

:33:10. > :33:14.the London assembly, he took a particular interest in matters

:33:15. > :33:18.relating to the London Fire Brigade and Fire Service matters. I can

:33:19. > :33:25.indeed confirm we are, we have already looked at the question of

:33:26. > :33:29.resilience forums around the country, we will learn any lessons

:33:30. > :33:36.and feed them into the resilience teams but we also need to ensure the

:33:37. > :33:40.resilience forums around the country are as resilient as they need to be

:33:41. > :33:43.in terms of providing the support should any disaster happened. We

:33:44. > :33:50.seen this issue in relation to other disasters like flooding, we need to

:33:51. > :33:57.insure that they are operating as accurately as they should. Can the

:33:58. > :34:01.Prime Minister please confirm when the judge will be appointed, also

:34:02. > :34:05.with the comments made by my colleagues on this site, I'd be

:34:06. > :34:11.grateful for your clarification as to whether you're advising us that

:34:12. > :34:13.you don't know whether the cladding was building regulation compliant

:34:14. > :34:17.because the question that been raised with the Prime Minister is

:34:18. > :34:21.whether that to reel was compliant and argue advising that it needs to

:34:22. > :34:28.be tested before you can give us a reply to that question? As I've

:34:29. > :34:36.said, the material is being tested, the results of those tests will

:34:37. > :34:42.be... The information that... The information that the fire and police

:34:43. > :34:46.are able to give publicly, they will give, this is part of the criminal

:34:47. > :34:51.investigation. In relation, it is... Honourable members... Honourable

:34:52. > :34:55.members may shake their heads but can I just make this point?

:34:56. > :34:57.Honourable members want to make sure there are criminal charges to be

:34:58. > :35:04.brought those charges are indeed brought. And we must therefore

:35:05. > :35:09.ensure that we give the police the opportunity to do the job that they

:35:10. > :35:18.undertake and that nothing that we do prejudices that. I welcome the

:35:19. > :35:22.Prime Minister's commitment to the publication of the early interim

:35:23. > :35:26.report. After the Croydon tram crash last year the real accident

:35:27. > :35:29.investigation board published two interim reports within three months

:35:30. > :35:34.identifying the immediate cause of the tram crash, so action could be

:35:35. > :35:38.taken. Could the Prime Minister assured this house is approach will

:35:39. > :35:41.be taken in relation to this particular interim report. I thank

:35:42. > :35:46.my honourable friend for that and it was important that report came out

:35:47. > :35:51.quickly in relation to the Croydon inquiry and I can confirm that I

:35:52. > :35:55.fully expect the judge to bring out an interim report but can I say to

:35:56. > :35:58.the honourable lady, sorry, I didn't answer her first question about the

:35:59. > :36:02.judge, I would expect within the next few days to be able to announce

:36:03. > :36:08.the name of the judge. We very much want to ensure that when the judge

:36:09. > :36:13.takes charge of this inquiry, that people feel as I said earlier, they

:36:14. > :36:18.can have full confidence in the inquiry and so we will take steps to

:36:19. > :36:22.ensure that is the case. Sympathies are not enough but on behalf of my

:36:23. > :36:26.party I offer them to all who have suffered and I express my gratitude

:36:27. > :36:30.to the emergency services officers show dedication and such

:36:31. > :36:34.unimaginable conditions. Criminal investigations are only to be

:36:35. > :36:38.expected but utilising individuals as partial retribution, those in

:36:39. > :36:42.government should search for souls and for the Prime Minister commit to

:36:43. > :36:46.ensure that in future policy legislation and resources, a

:36:47. > :36:53.disaster of this magnitude can never happen again in a 21st first world

:36:54. > :36:58.country? Can I first of all congratulate the honourable lady and

:36:59. > :37:01.her appointment as leader of the Plaid Cymru members in this house

:37:02. > :37:06.and can I assure we doing everything in this house and the inquiry will

:37:07. > :37:09.play an important part in identifying action that needs to be

:37:10. > :37:15.taken to insure a disaster like this can never happen again. Richard

:37:16. > :37:18.tracks. Can my right honourable friend confirmed that the cladding

:37:19. > :37:24.is found to be illegal, other research comes back but other towers

:37:25. > :37:28.have been similarly clad that the public inquiry will extend its

:37:29. > :37:31.remote to look at investigations into all towers that are similarly

:37:32. > :37:38.clad with the legal cladding if indeed it is illegal? What I did say

:37:39. > :37:42.to my honourable friend is that if illegal activity has taken place

:37:43. > :37:45.then that is a matter of the police and will form part of the criminal

:37:46. > :37:50.investigation by police will undertake. Of course the inquiry,

:37:51. > :37:54.it's not just a question of what the inquiry does, it's a question of

:37:55. > :38:00.what we are doing now in relation to other tower blocks, that's why we're

:38:01. > :38:03.encouraging private landlords, and housing associations amongst others

:38:04. > :38:08.to sending samples for testing. Angela Eagle. Thank you Mr Speaker.

:38:09. > :38:17.As the leader of a party which is responsible for seven years of

:38:18. > :38:23.austerity which has cut 56%, 56%, 56% of the cash available to my

:38:24. > :38:27.local authority, but the last seven years, and the leader of the party

:38:28. > :38:37.that has spent its time talking about regulation as a bad thing, is

:38:38. > :38:44.she now to the country for the state of local government went the richest

:38:45. > :38:52.in London cannot afford, couldn't cope with this emergency calls... At

:38:53. > :39:01.the same time as they were giving money back to the council taxpayers.

:39:02. > :39:06.I said to the honourable lady, we are dealing, currently dealing with

:39:07. > :39:08.the aftermath of the terrible disaster that has led to people

:39:09. > :39:12.losing their lives and others losing their homes and everything they

:39:13. > :39:17.owned. We are ensuring we are putting the steps in place, I

:39:18. > :39:21.recognise as I said, initially the response wasn't good enough, that's

:39:22. > :39:25.fine we stepped up the response and I didn't respond to the right

:39:26. > :39:29.honourable lady, the member for Camberwell and Peckham but I said in

:39:30. > :39:34.my statement I have chairing Cobra meetings myself, that's why we've

:39:35. > :39:37.been putting extra resource in to make sure that responses suitable.

:39:38. > :39:42.This will be an issue of looking at the regulations, as I said my

:39:43. > :39:47.understanding is that these were established in 2006. We will be

:39:48. > :39:51.looking at the regulations, the inquiry will look at them, how they

:39:52. > :39:55.were applied, the actions of the local authority, I am sure they will

:39:56. > :40:01.look at issues raised about the residents complaints in advance of

:40:02. > :40:04.this disaster about the tenant management organisation and they

:40:05. > :40:10.will get the bottom of who was responsible. Order, order. As befits

:40:11. > :40:15.the occasion these are a thoughtful and solemn exchanges but I must

:40:16. > :40:19.advise the house that progress thus far has been very slow, I am keen to

:40:20. > :40:22.try and accommodate the extent of the interest and therefore I appeal

:40:23. > :40:27.to colleagues now to confine themselves to pithy, short single

:40:28. > :40:32.sentence questions of which the honourable gentleman the member for

:40:33. > :40:37.north-east Somerset is a notable exponent. Jacob Rees Mogg. Thank

:40:38. > :40:42.you. At the end of her compassionate statement that prime ministers said

:40:43. > :40:46.we have to think about people leading very different lives from

:40:47. > :40:49.ourselves, as I'm sure she knows, opinion surveys going back over

:40:50. > :40:53.decades people never said they wanted to live in tower blocks and

:40:54. > :41:01.can we change public policy so tower blocks can become a thing of the

:41:02. > :41:04.past? I'm grateful to my honourable friend for that question. There

:41:05. > :41:08.aren't many people who don't wish to live in tower blocks, there are some

:41:09. > :41:13.people who are perfectly comfortable living in tower blocks, what we have

:41:14. > :41:16.to look at is the approach taken to social housing, I think that's one

:41:17. > :41:22.of the lessons to come from this disaster. I don't want to be an

:41:23. > :41:27.outbreak of sibling rivalry so Ibe but therefore call Maria Eagle.

:41:28. > :41:31.Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Prime Minister confirmed in her statement

:41:32. > :41:33.testing arrangements confirmed combustible cladding in some tower

:41:34. > :41:38.blocks on other parts of the country. Given that people who were

:41:39. > :41:44.living in those tower blocks are going to fear perhaps more than

:41:45. > :41:48.others the consequences of that discovery what steps can she take to

:41:49. > :41:55.make sure that the landlords and local authorities where these tower

:41:56. > :42:01.blocks exist can swiftly, swiftly, deal with the consequences of that

:42:02. > :42:06.discovery? That work is already being undertaken. As soon as we

:42:07. > :42:08.identified, first of all, the testing work has been undertaken by

:42:09. > :42:14.local authorities, housing associations, we encourage private

:42:15. > :42:17.landlords to do it too, of their blogs, to ensure fire safety. We

:42:18. > :42:23.encourage everyone to sending samples overly can check in labs,

:42:24. > :42:27.local authorities were immediately informed if the material is

:42:28. > :42:30.combustible, they are then looking with their local Fire Service at

:42:31. > :42:34.ensuring the safety of those buildings, that will be done in a

:42:35. > :42:39.number of ways but of course there is a responsibility to ensure people

:42:40. > :42:44.are housed safely and the government is working with local authorities to

:42:45. > :42:47.ensure that. I commend the statement from my right honourable friend and

:42:48. > :42:50.the extraordinary degree of personal responsibility she has taken. As she

:42:51. > :42:56.and her officials had the opportunity to look at reports by

:42:57. > :42:58.the public administration and Constitutional affairs committee and

:42:59. > :43:02.its predecessor committee under Doctor Tony Wright which repeatedly

:43:03. > :43:06.recommended the House of Commons should have more of a role in the

:43:07. > :43:10.setting up of such enquiries and would she consider asking the house

:43:11. > :43:14.to establish a special select Committee very quickly to look at

:43:15. > :43:19.the terms of reference, to give a pre-appointment hearing as necessary

:43:20. > :43:23.and to set the budget and timetable and mixture this public inquiry has

:43:24. > :43:28.cross-party and public confidence in the way so many public enquiries

:43:29. > :43:33.have failed to do? My right honourable friend raises an

:43:34. > :43:38.important issue about enquiries and of course, we always look carefully

:43:39. > :43:42.at the reports of the PAC and indeed its predecessor committee. I think

:43:43. > :43:48.what is pot and in relation to this inquiry is that we do get it up and

:43:49. > :43:53.running. With appropriate speed. And the most important thing to me is

:43:54. > :43:57.the residents avec will have confidence in the inquiry. The key

:43:58. > :44:02.thing that we need to do is ensure it has the residents who feel this

:44:03. > :44:09.inquiry is genuinely going to get to the truth for them. I am still

:44:10. > :44:12.waiting to hear the prime ministers say she will underwrite the costs to

:44:13. > :44:17.local authorities of inspection and urgent remedial action given cuts of

:44:18. > :44:20.up to a third and a half of local authority budgets and housing

:44:21. > :44:24.providers being required to implement a red card which a squeeze

:44:25. > :44:27.their budgets. We cannot have a postcode lottery in terms of safety

:44:28. > :44:32.provision and that needs a commitment now from the government

:44:33. > :44:38.to underwrite it, will she do that today, yes or no? We are providing

:44:39. > :44:42.the testing facilities to local authorities, working with local

:44:43. > :44:45.authorities to identify their needs and requirements and the response

:44:46. > :44:52.they need to take. And work with them to insure they can respond in

:44:53. > :44:55.the way that is necessary. Can the Prime Minister confirmed that

:44:56. > :45:00.residents will be housed as close as possible to work they lived to

:45:01. > :45:04.ensure they are close to friends, family and support networks? Yes, I

:45:05. > :45:06.can't give that reassurance, it's being close to friends and family

:45:07. > :45:13.but also it's important for children and for me to be able to go to their

:45:14. > :45:17.local schools. Make Hellyer. The Prime Minister talked about those

:45:18. > :45:22.far removed from the lifestyles of those here in Westminster, this is

:45:23. > :45:25.the reality in my constituency with overcrowding, two families living in

:45:26. > :45:29.many homes, homelessness the worst it's ever been, will she be true to

:45:30. > :45:33.the word and take a personal lead in taking plans for it to make sure we

:45:34. > :45:34.are delivering not just more housing but really affordable housing of the

:45:35. > :45:45.people who needed? And we publish proposals in relation

:45:46. > :45:49.to housing before the general election. We want to ensure there

:45:50. > :45:53.are more affordable homes, more houses being built, and we are

:45:54. > :46:01.putting half ?1 billion into the issue of dealing with homelessness.

:46:02. > :46:03.May I thank the Prime Minister for her detailed and compassionate

:46:04. > :46:07.statement that she has given us this morning, but I wonder if she would

:46:08. > :46:11.agree that, although there are obviously legitimate questions

:46:12. > :46:15.surrounding the Grenfell Tower tragedy and absolutely rightly they

:46:16. > :46:19.must be asked, we should exercise all caution in attributing blame or

:46:20. > :46:24.condemnation before we know the facts? As a former journalist I feel

:46:25. > :46:27.really strongly about this. Scaremongering doesn't help anybody.

:46:28. > :46:35.Getting to the bottom of things does. My honourable friend is right.

:46:36. > :46:38.What is important is that the evidence is identified, that the

:46:39. > :46:43.issue is properly considered, everybody is able to give their

:46:44. > :46:47.views and their evidence into the enquiry and that it is able to get

:46:48. > :46:50.to the truth and to find the result and find out what happened.

:46:51. > :46:54.Obviously the Fire Services and the police are looking at the immediate

:46:55. > :46:58.cause of the fire and will make public any statements in relation to

:46:59. > :47:03.that they are able to, but the enquiry will get to the truth and it

:47:04. > :47:10.is important that we actually allow the enquiry to identify

:47:11. > :47:12.responsibility. Leeds City Council have responded swiftly,

:47:13. > :47:17.communicating with tenants and residents in all 116 blocks, testing

:47:18. > :47:22.the cladding, none of which uses the same as that was used in Kensington.

:47:23. > :47:26.But what we now need to know, and following on from the question from

:47:27. > :47:30.the member for Westminster North is that what ever recommendations are

:47:31. > :47:34.made, on sprinklers, on cladding, on fire alarms and other remedial work,

:47:35. > :47:39.that it will be central government that is providing the funds to

:47:40. > :47:47.ensure that residents in all those thousands of tower blocks across the

:47:48. > :47:50.country are safe. I thought I had responded on a number of questions

:47:51. > :47:54.on this. The government is working with local authorities. We will

:47:55. > :47:58.insure any essential works necessary in terms of the medial action for

:47:59. > :48:07.the safety of these blocks in relation to fire are taken. We will

:48:08. > :48:09.identify... There will be different circumstances in different local

:48:10. > :48:19.authorities. We will insure that the work can be undertaken. Can I

:48:20. > :48:23.commend the Prime Minister for her statement and for talking about the

:48:24. > :48:26.public enquiry? From my experience of having a public enquiry the two

:48:27. > :48:31.and a half years in my constituency it is absolutely vital it is

:48:32. > :48:36.thorough but that it is also as swift as possible. Can I urge that

:48:37. > :48:40.whomsoever is appointed talks with people like Sir Robert Francis, who

:48:41. > :48:44.chaired the public enquiry in my constituency to find out from his

:48:45. > :48:47.experience how that can best be achieved? I am grateful to my

:48:48. > :48:55.honourable friend, I absolutely agree with him that this is done as

:48:56. > :48:59.quickly as possible. Can I welcome the Prime Minister's statement that

:49:00. > :49:03.the government will pay for legal representation by those affected by

:49:04. > :49:07.this fire at the enquiry? I ask to confirm that this means both victims

:49:08. > :49:11.and tenants groups will be given public funding for independent and

:49:12. > :49:15.separate legal representation, sufficient to enable them to have a

:49:16. > :49:19.voice equal to that of local and national government and the private

:49:20. > :49:24.management company? I ask this question because I understand that

:49:25. > :49:29.the tenants association were not allowed legal representation in the

:49:30. > :49:33.Lakanal House enquiry. I said to the honourable lady that it is one of

:49:34. > :49:36.the experiences that Kmart of the Hillsborough enquiry was the

:49:37. > :49:40.importance of ensuring that those who were affected had appropriate

:49:41. > :49:42.legal representation, and the government did fund that legal

:49:43. > :49:47.representation to enable them to have the strength of voice they

:49:48. > :49:52.needed in that enquiry. Of course, as she will be aware, how the

:49:53. > :49:55.enquiry is conducted, and the witnesses who are called and the

:49:56. > :49:58.representations that will be received, there will be an element

:49:59. > :50:02.of the judge deciding how he wants to conduct that enquiry. But for

:50:03. > :50:05.those who require legal representation, we will be funding

:50:06. > :50:09.that by the government, and I have not set any limits in relation to

:50:10. > :50:17.the types of body or the individuals who that will be. STUDIO: Coverage

:50:18. > :50:21.of this continues on BBC Parliament. We will just break away just to pick

:50:22. > :50:27.up on some of the key lines that have emerged from that statement by

:50:28. > :50:33.the Prime Minister and the subsequent questioning. Tests on

:50:34. > :50:36.cladding and tower blocks after the fire at Grenfell Tower had shown a

:50:37. > :50:41.number combustor ball. There are tests being carried out on 100 tower

:50:42. > :50:45.blocks every day, and she said some of those tests have shown a number

:50:46. > :50:50.are combustible. In terms of where that takes us, she was saying, that

:50:51. > :50:55.it is important that people are housed safely and councils have a

:50:56. > :51:01.responsibility to ensure that. Also talking about immigration should not

:51:02. > :51:07.be an issue for anybody not coming forward to say that they were in

:51:08. > :51:12.that tower and that they are OK, saying that all victims will not be

:51:13. > :51:16.tested on their immigration status, everybody is going to be helped as a

:51:17. > :51:23.result of what has happened at Grenfell Tower. And also talking

:51:24. > :51:27.about residents getting involved in setting the terms of reference for

:51:28. > :51:33.the enquiry. She did not answer the question as to whether the cladding

:51:34. > :51:36.on tower blocks, combustible cladding, is actually illegal, which

:51:37. > :51:38.is interesting, given that the Chancellor Philip Hammond had

:51:39. > :51:44.previously said it was, she would not answer that question. Well, she

:51:45. > :51:47.did say a number of tower blocks around the country are covered in

:51:48. > :51:52.similar combustible cladding material as Grenfell Tower. The

:51:53. > :51:56.house should of course be careful on spec relating what caused this fire,

:51:57. > :52:00.but as a precaution, the government has arranged to test cladding in all

:52:01. > :52:17.relevant tower blocks. Mr Speaker, shortly before I came to the

:52:18. > :52:19.chamber, I was informed that a none of these tests have come back as

:52:20. > :52:20.combustible. The relevant local authorities and local Fire Services

:52:21. > :52:24.have been informed, and, as I speak, they are taking all possible steps

:52:25. > :52:27.to insure buildings are safe and to inform affected residents.

:52:28. > :52:30.Our reporter Jim Reed has been to a new tower block

:52:31. > :52:31.in north London which, the housing association has

:52:32. > :52:34.confirmed, is cladded in what's thought to be the same material.

:52:35. > :52:37.He has spoken to residents and the housing association reps there.

:52:38. > :52:41.It seems there are a number of tower blocks now identified. We don't know

:52:42. > :52:43.the numbers yet, Theresa May saying a number of tests have come back as

:52:44. > :52:46.combustible. We think there will be a statement from the Secretary of

:52:47. > :52:48.State from local government and communities this afternoon that

:52:49. > :52:52.might give us an idea of numbers involved. It is quite completed it,

:52:53. > :52:55.because it is not just councils here, it is housing associations,

:52:56. > :53:04.half of the housing stock is owned and run by housing associations, not

:53:05. > :53:07.councils. We went to one development last night in Tottenham, north

:53:08. > :53:12.London. The interesting thing about this one, it is a very new

:53:13. > :53:16.development, so this is called Rivers Apartments, it is social

:53:17. > :53:20.housing, there is a 22 floor block in the middle that was built just

:53:21. > :53:24.two years ago. It is a shared ownership scheme, so it is social

:53:25. > :53:27.housing and yesterday we understand that residents said it is very

:53:28. > :53:33.likely it is the same material that was on Grenfell Tower. We spoke to

:53:34. > :53:37.Mark Newstead from Newlands Housing trust to ask in what is going on and

:53:38. > :53:40.how they are dealing with this situation. The more important

:53:41. > :53:44.question for us now is not whether or not this met building regulations

:53:45. > :53:51.at the time, it is what is the ongoing safety of the building and

:53:52. > :53:53.what impact will this have on the safety of the building, this

:53:54. > :53:56.cladding, and if we are advised it is not safe for it would have a

:53:57. > :53:59.Dutch mental impact during the fire, then we will look to have that

:54:00. > :54:05.cladding replaced as soon as possible. So you might have to take

:54:06. > :54:11.it all down? That is a very real possibility. So what have people

:54:12. > :54:14.living there said? It is important to mention in this case that this is

:54:15. > :54:19.very different from Grenfell Tower. It is a new block, built just two or

:54:20. > :54:24.three years ago, so it has all those new safety features, a fireman 's

:54:25. > :54:27.lift, smoke ventilation system, it has safe rooms in the building

:54:28. > :54:32.itself so it is very different from Grenfell. Also the design of it, the

:54:33. > :54:35.cladding may be the same, but in these new-build sites, the cladding

:54:36. > :54:39.was always in visit is part of the construction of the building. The

:54:40. > :54:43.issue with Grenfell is they were adding cladding to a 1970s block,

:54:44. > :54:46.and the people we spoke to said that can build risk into what you're

:54:47. > :54:49.doing. Having said that, we spoke to residents last night, who said they

:54:50. > :54:53.are concerned, they want answers, they want to know why this stuff was

:54:54. > :54:57.put on the outside of their building. You can see this is a

:54:58. > :55:01.new-build, so if they are using stuff that is done how many years

:55:02. > :55:06.ago, it is disgusting. The amount of money they have, they need to sort

:55:07. > :55:11.out the health and safety, this is the first priority. So I do hope it

:55:12. > :55:16.gets done as soon as possible, because it will be better for all of

:55:17. > :55:20.us. Obviously Grenfell was absolutely tragic but I think it is

:55:21. > :55:24.two absolute different buildings, this is only three years old, built

:55:25. > :55:29.with modern fireproof technology. I don't really think I am too

:55:30. > :55:35.concerned about the cladding on its own. If this didn't happen with the

:55:36. > :55:40.fire in Grenfell, I mean, what would have happened? We would have been

:55:41. > :55:44.living here and unknowingly were not say. So I am very disappointed, I

:55:45. > :55:46.am. These things it should have been checked out before having people

:55:47. > :55:49.move in, do you know what I mean? So Newlon, the Housing Association,

:55:50. > :55:52.said it's arranged with the fire service to carry out

:55:53. > :55:59.more checks today. They are sending off the material to

:56:00. > :56:02.be scientifically tested, though they are pretty sure it is the same

:56:03. > :56:07.stuff that was at Grenfell Tower. The interesting thing is that that

:56:08. > :56:10.block was just two years old. We understand the building regulations

:56:11. > :56:16.were approved by Haringey council. The company involved in building it,

:56:17. > :56:20.a FTSE 250 company, earliest averaged building company. People

:56:21. > :56:23.say you have to look at the building regulations, if a company with that

:56:24. > :56:26.much experience as putting stuff on the outside of the building which

:56:27. > :56:31.the government at least at the weekend was saying is banned, what

:56:32. > :56:34.is going on with these regulations, are they understood? Philip Hammond

:56:35. > :56:39.did say that it is banned, but Theresa May would not answer the

:56:40. > :56:42.question in the Commons, what is the situation? We just don't know at

:56:43. > :56:51.this stage. You speak to one fire safety officer, they say one thing

:56:52. > :56:54.very first Fritz Lee, speak to the next they say something else. The

:56:55. > :56:55.best we can say is that the regulations are very difficult to

:56:56. > :56:58.understand, nobody is clear. Norman Smith has been listing into

:56:59. > :57:02.what has happened in the Commons. What do you think about what you

:57:03. > :57:06.have heard? An awful lot of questions now. Obviously we need to

:57:07. > :57:11.know how many tower blocks have got this flammable clothing, what

:57:12. > :57:16.happens to residents living in them at the moment. Are they going to be

:57:17. > :57:24.rehoused or evacuated? How swiftly Canvey cladding be removed, how will

:57:25. > :57:28.it take to carry out the checks on what the 4000 tower blocks that

:57:29. > :57:31.there are in the UK, and in terms of whether or not this cladding

:57:32. > :57:35.complies with building regulations, listening to what Mrs May was

:57:36. > :57:39.saying, she was repeatedly asked that, and she repeatedly avoided

:57:40. > :57:44.answering it. I think the reason she avoided answering it is because it

:57:45. > :57:48.forms part of the police investigation, and she said within

:57:49. > :57:52.the next 48 hours, the police will issue a statement about the enquiry

:57:53. > :57:56.in relation to cladding, and that rather suggests there may be a

:57:57. > :58:04.question about the legality of the cladding used on Grenfell Tower.

:58:05. > :58:09.Now, that would then raise the possibility that maybe other tower

:58:10. > :58:12.blocks, if they have got the same cladding, potentially have got

:58:13. > :58:17.illegal material on the side of their buildings, so these are very,

:58:18. > :58:21.very serious questions. Norman, thank you very much. Much more

:58:22. > :58:24.reaction to that coming up on BBC Newsroom Live next. Thank you for

:58:25. > :58:31.your company today, have a good day, I will see you soon.

:58:32. > :58:36.The critically-acclaimed series is back.

:58:37. > :58:40.then we have to treat only patients with very early stages of