14/12/2017 Victoria Derbyshire

Hello, it's Thursday, it's 9am,

I'm Victoria Derbyshire.

This morning, we're

at St Paul's Cathedral where members

of the royal family and the Prime

Minister will join families

of victims of the Grenfell Tower

fire for a memorial service,

six months after the devastating

fire which killed 71 people.

Throughout the programme,

we'll be joined by those

who survived the fire and will be

attending today's memorial

as they prepare for their first

Christmas since the disaster.

It's not going to be a happy time.

Christmas is meant for

a family to be together.

We will hear tributes to some of the

loved ones who died that night on

the 14th of June.

I, Betty, cry every night

for you, Mary and Khadija.

All the advice you gave me

and my children will stay with us

for the rest of our lives.

Good morning. A frosty morning in

central London, outside St Paul's

Cathedral. Over the next couple of

hours, 1500 invited guests will make

their way inside for the national

memorial service and we will be

talking to some of them over the

next couple of hours. Let us bring

you the BBC News so far today.

A memorial service is being held

at St Paul's Cathedral this morning

for the victims and survivors

of the Grenfell Tower

fire in West London.

71 people

were killed when the fire tore

through the tower block,

six months ago today.

Prince Charles, Prince William

and Theresa May will be

among the 2,000 people

who are expected to attend.

My thoughts and the thoughts of

everyone in the Met with people who

lost their lives and their loved

ones. Also those people who lived in

Grenfell Tower and those who

escaped, those who have lost their

homes and the local community. It is

the most appalling tragedy. Our

thoughts are with them.

Theresa May is due at

a summit in Brussels,

hours after Conservative rebels

in the Commons defeated

the Government in a key Brexit vote.

MPs backed an amendment giving

them a legal guarantee of a vote

on the final Brexit deal

struck with Brussels.

One rebel, Stephen Hammond,

was sacked by the Prime Minister

as a party vice chairman

in the aftermath of the vote.

A third person has been charged with

the murder of four children who died

in a house fire in Salford on

Monday. A 25-year-old man from the

area has also been charged with

attempted murder and arson.

The medical charity, MSF,

says it believes more than six

and a half thousand Rohingya Muslims

were killed in the violence that

began in Myanmar in late August.

The estimate is based on interviews

with some of the six hundred

thousand Rohingyas who've fled

to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The Burmese armed forces have stated

that about four hundred people died,

describing most of them as Muslim

terrorists.

The Hollywood actor Salma Hayek

has become the latest

celebrity to accuse

Harvey Weinstein of harassment.

In an article for the New York

Times, she wrote that the film

producer threatened to kill her

and described him as

a "rage fuelled monster".

A spokesperson for Mr Weinstein

disputed the actor's account.

British doctors said they had made a

significant breakthrough in the

treatment of haemophilia A. Around

6000 people in the UK have the

defect meaning their blood cannot

clot properly. The research team

used gene therapy to correct the

defect in a small safety trial. All

the 13 patients who took part no

longer need treatment. Health

Secretary Jeremy Hunt says the NHS

in England will become the first

health care system in the world to

publish the numbers of death of

patients caused in their care. The

data will be published on avoidable

deaths by the end of the year the

data to follow soon afterwards. Up

to 9000 people die each because of

problems and failures in NHS care.

That is a summary of the latest BBC

News. More a bit later. Time for the

sport now.

The crucial third Ashes Test has

begun at the WACA in Perth

with England needing to avoid defeat

to keep their hopes

of retaining the urn alive.

Having won the toss and chosing

to bat, it's been a steady

start so far for England,

but they lost Alastair

Cook for just seven.

Marc Stoneman showed

there was some fight with a 58

before he was

controversially dismissed.

James Vince and Joe

Root reached the 20s,

but Dawid Malan helped England past

the 200 mark with his half century.

England are now 253-4 in their first

innings.

The four-time Tour de France

champion Chris Froome has told

the BBC he understands

people will be cynical

but insists his legacy won't be

tainted, after it emerged he had

double the allowed level of a legal

asthma drug in his urine

following a test during the Vuelta

de Espana, which he

won, in September.

Cycling's world governing body,

the UCI, wants more details

from the team but Froome

has not been suspended.

Manchester City have

extended their winning

Premier League run to a record

breaking 15 games by hammering

struggling Swansea 4-0.

All the football stories on the BBC

Sport website and app.

Good morning.

This morning, we're

broadcasting live

from St Paul's Cathedral ahead

of a national memorial services

for the victims and survivors

of the Grenfell Tower fire.

It was exactly six months ago today

that a small blaze spread rapidly

from the kitchen in a flat

on the fourth floor of the block

to, within hours,

the top of the tower,

the 24th floor.

Inside, mums, dads,

children, grandmas,

uncles, aunties, brothers,

sisters, wives, husbands.

They'd come to live in a high-rise

building on the Lancaster West

estate in North Kensington,

one of the richest boroughs

in the country, from all over

the UK, and from all over the world

- Ethiopia, Italy, Sierra Leone,

the Philipines, Gambia.

As a result of the fire on June

14th, and no one knew this

then as we broadcast

from North Kensington that

morning, 71 people died.

The service today will be attended

by the Prince of Wales,

the Duchess of Cornwall,

the Duke and Duchess

of Cambridge, and Prince Harry.

St Paul's have consulted

with the Bishop of Kensington,

the Al Manaar Mosque,

local clergy of different faiths,

survivors, the bereaved

and the wider community,

on the arrangements

for this morning.

The leader of the local council,

Conservative-run Kensington

and Chelsea, has been asked

by families to stay away.

Today on the programme,

we're going to remember

some of those who died.

And we're going to talk

to survivors, which we've done

regularly on our programme

since June 14th.

Let me introduce you to Paul, who

lived on the sixth floor of Grenfell

Tower he has chosen to give his

first interview to us will stop and

to Bishop Graham Tomlin. Good

morning to both of you. Thank you

for talking to us. Paul, tell us

what the day means to you.

The day,

it is more for the bereaved than

anyone else. The people who lost

their lives in the fire, it is

remembering that their lives were

not obviously, they did not die for

anything. It is about remembering

the people, my neighbours got my

family, people I used to help.

Things like helping to put shopping

in the lifts. It is about

remembering bringing the people who

survived, coming out of the tower,

actually getting a chance to see my

neighbours for the first time in

quite awhile. Since the fire we have

been scattered different hotels,

different accommodation is at stuff

like that. It is more like as a

family and the group, bringing

everyone together and have a chance

to remember the people who

tragically lost their lives that

day.

And the theme of unity is one

of the important messages you would

like to bring forward today, isn't

it?

That is right. We wanted this

service to bring together the

different aspects of the community.

Remember those who died and offer

support to the families who survived

from the tower, those who have been

bereaved but offer an element of

hope for the future. That is

something for the whole community.

We hope that will happen today.

Paul, how would you say you are six

months on?

To be pretty honest, I

don't think that today, six months

on, it has not hit home what

happens. I do still feel this is

just a big, long dream and I will

eventually wake up back in my flat

inside the tower, back inside my

bed. For me, it is still not good.

The simple fact that six months on,

about 40 households have been

rehoused by the rest of us are still

in hotels or temporary accommodation

is quite sickening, to be brutally

honest. I think the most important

thing is to try to move on

gradually. If we cannot be doing

that if we are in temporary

accommodation. What people need a

structure in their lives, trying to

get back to normality. We cannot do

that, especially with young children

being in hotel rooms. The only thing

right now for kids who survived, the

only structure they have is going to

school and coming back. That is the

only bit of structure they have.

Going home from

hotel room which is meant to be the

sitting rooms, their bedrooms. I

think it is still not going to be

good enough until people can move

on. We need to look at the housing

situation and everyone to be

rehoused, either temporary or

permanent.

How would you say your

mental health is?

It is not the best

at the moment. Six months on, like I

said it does not feel real. I am on

a lot of medication to try to help

me come to terms with what I saw

that night, trying to help me move

on. I am not in a good place at the

moment.

When you hear Paul described

the way he is feeling today, you are

hoping to deliver a message of hope

later. That is hard to do when

people are still clearly traumatised

and clearly struggling.

Exactly.

This service has to be something to

reflect the emotions and grief that

is going on within the local

community that Paul has expressed so

well. There are so many unresolved

issues around in the community,

around housing, the inquiry and what

will come out of that. About the

tower itself and its future. It is

difficult to live with that

uncertainty. At the same time we do

want to say it is possible for lives

to be rebuilt. The significance of

coming here to St Paul's, it is a

religious place. There was a strong

desire in the local community to

have the servers here because they'd

is important to many people in the

local area. -- the service. That can

bring strength to people. We hope we

can express a vision of a way of

living together which is better than

we have done in the past to give

people a feeling that when one

chapter comes to an end another

begins. It does not resolve the

issues but it helps people to move

on and find comfort and even from

the fact the nation is coming around

to remember them and support them

today.

It is clearly going to be a

very emotional day. Do you feel

comforted in any way that the

country is behind you that this is a

national memorial service and the

significance of it being held at St

Paul's?

It plays a big part. I don't

want people in the broader

community, people as far as

Manchester, to forget everything

that has happened down here. From

statistics wise, from what people

tried to make out, is that people

are being rehoused and people are

being offered money, people have

been given money, charity money, six

months on. I don't know why people

are still in the way in which they

are right now. The simple fact is it

is not like that. Right now, people

see it from the outside point of

view with what is happening. We're

actually doing... They are doing a

good thing. Stuff like this

remembering will help us. People not

forgetting that night. I want the

broader community to realise that

and remember it going further

forward. There was a lot of

working-class people. From the

outside point of view, people look

to the tower and thought a lot of

people were probably on benefits who

lived in the tower, they probably

have income support and jobseeker's

allowance. That is not the case.

There were 14 leaseholders in the

building that that is such a

working-class family building. So

many different cultures of life, so

many religions and ethnic groups,

all in one block. It was such an

amazing block in such a privilege to

be part of it.

What do you think

about the invited guests today? The

Royals will be well represented and

will want to pay their respects.

It

is welcomed. I believe that it is

the right thing to do in terms of

moving forward, showing them. I know

that Prince Harry and Prince

Charles, Prince William, they have

come to the error to show their

support for mental health. I really

do appreciate that and envy that as

well to show their support. For the

Queen to come down the first couple

of days after the fire actually

happened, at her age as well, and

stand up as long as she stood up.

People who survived the fire, I envy

her full coming down and showing her

support.

The Prime Minister will be

here today, and the leaders of the

main political parties.

I do not

want to make it political. I am not

a big fan of Theresa May for the way

in which she dealt with coming to

the area the first couple of days

after, I have a lot of anger and

rage towards the with how she dealt

with coming to the area, meeting the

Fire Services and driving off. For

me, it is good chief has come down

now, but she is really hated in the

community. -- it is good she has.

You will make a fairly short

address, Bishop Graham Tomlin, what

else will be featured in the

memorial service this morning?

Lots

of different aspects of the service,

songs, hymns, prayers, performances,

poems, a montage of voices from the

local community, trying to express

some of the emotions. It will be a

very emotional time, hopefully it is

something that will reflect the

variety of the local community and

something everyone can feel part of

and feel it is their service. Some

polls have worked very closely with

local community groups and faith

groups to make sure this is

something that does reflect the

local community -- St Paul's.

Hopefully it will bring comfort and

support and strength to the local

community cover people who are here,

and it will be significant, bring

people together. Many people have

been scattered, people who live

together, knew each other very well

and hopefully this service will

bring them together in a very

significant way.

Thank you very

much. Thank you for your time, Paul,

we appreciate it. Over the last six

months, there has been shock, anger,

that quiet anger you heard from Paul

there and the community has rallied

together to support each other.

I opened the front door

and there was thick smoke

among the whole landing.

There was a lot of young kids

and a lot of old people

living in the block.

We could see this was

a bad one immediately.

The sky was glowing.

The fire brigade,

the ambulance and the police,

they couldn't do nothing.

They couldn't get in.

They were just telling them to just

stay there, where they are,

we will come and get you.

People have lost their homes.

Children have seen things.

People were jumping

out of the window.

We just need to rebuild

as a community now.

Wow.

We saw a lot, we saw a lot.

Man, we saw, we saw

a lot with our own eyes.

We saw, we saw friends, families.

Our whole life...

Honestly, it's all right,

you don't have to say any more.

Then I went outside, I called him,

I said, "Where are you?"

He said, "I'm in the flat."

I said, "Why you didn't come?

They brought us outside.

I thought you were with us".

He said, "No one

brought me outside".

He said, "Why have you left me?"

He said, "Why?"

I didn't leave him.

Today, we back here in

North Kensington to catch up

with some of those we first met

on that Wednesday.

We still have missing people.

We still have no answers.

It's constantly, we are

expected to chase things.

Go here, phone this.

Why is it OK that there

are thousands of empty homes?

Why, in this area,

are these people homeless?

I don't want money.

We are not looking for money.

Olu does not want

temporary accommodation.

He wants permanent accommodation.

He wants good,

permanent accommodation.

That is not too much to ask.

Can you promise him that?

Victoria, what we have said...

Just say yes or no.

Exactly.

I was happy in my house.

I work hard, you know, I work hard.

I had a good house.

What about those people that

lost their children?

Where are they hiding?

They can't even go in their heads.

They can't even go

and sleep at night.

What about those people?

What about them?

Shame on you!

Shame on you!

BOOING.

Shame on you!

I have therefore decided to step

down as leader of the council

as soon as a successor is in place.

We want justice!

We want justice!

The community is strong.

The chasm isn't between

the community, whether they are rich

or poor, it is between them

and the state.

We lost lives.

Some people, all their family.

More of us have got

to spend time there.

More of us have got to walk

in the shoes of some

of those who are residents.

What I want to ensure

is that the Grenfell United

residents and others locally

are given the support that they need

following this terrible tragedy.

The communities are the ones

who are going to make sure that

everybody has somewhere to go

on Christmas Day.

I want to spend my Christmas Day

with my community because I think

after this year, after what we have

been through this year,

I think that is the only way we can

heal is with each other.

Exactly.

Six months on from the fire

and understandably, emotions

are incredibly raw.

The anger and betrayal at the local

council's response to the fire

is as strong as ever.

Many families made homeless

are going to be spending

Christmas in a hotel room.

Rukshama Mamudu and 12-year-old

old grandson, Tyrshondre, are here.

They escaped from the first floor.

We have followed their

story on our programme.

Hamid Wahbi was the

only one in his flat

on the 16th floor during the fire.

We will speak to him in a moment.

We will speak to him in a moment.

He helped his neighbours escape.

Good morning. How are you? Thank you

for talking to us. Tell me how you

are feeling about today.

I feel

happy for being alive and I feel

happy for being able to bear what is

happening around me and my son.

When

you are inside in the memorial

service, what will you be thinking

about?

I will be praising God and

praying for those who died in the

tower and praying for us to be able

to be settled quickly and happy

because.

to be settled quickly and happy

What will you be thinking about

today today?

Still thinking about

Grenfell Tower.

What does the

National Service mean to you this

morning?

Six months on, I am not

sure.

Still hard, isn't it?

Yeah.

How would you say you are, six

months on?

I am OK. We have to go

through these things, if it is God's

wish and God will see us through it.

I am happy to come and say thanks to

God, very happy to come and say

thanks to God for sparing our lives.

We have followed both of you since

that day. You are still in a hotel.

You now have two rooms, understand,

as opposed to one room. How are you

feeling about that?

I feel bad about

it but on the contrary, I have to

look at my other survivors and to

give them encouragement by making

them feel, it is not the end of our

lives, we will get over it. And by

the grace of God, we will all be all

right.

I spoke to a gentleman called

Paul earlier who also escape from

the tower and he said today was

important for him in that it was

bringing you all together and you

are now scattered in various places,

living in different parts of the

borough and elsewhere, would you

agree with that, it is important to

get together?

It is very, very

important. All went through the same

hell of fire and when we were all

coming out, some of us were in the

hospital, we still visited one

another because to me, that tower

was, like, a multicultural gathering

of people and we were very friendly

and very close. Very close.

And what

are you thinking as you approach

Christmas with your 12-year-old

grandson and the fact you will be

still in the hotel?

We make do with

what we have. That is what we have.

We cannot go to the town hall and

forced them to give us what they

don't have. According to them, they

are doing their best. The only thing

I do not like its promises upon

promises. You know you cannot do it,

why promise? Lifting our hopes and

letting us down. Very wrong. At the

end of the day, they finish work and

they go home to their comfortable

homes. I am not saying they are not

thinking about us, maybe there are

some handicaps, there should be a

better way of handling the

situation.

I am going to bring in

Hamid. I will in a moment, I beg

your pardon. You told us the last

time we spoke that you continued to

wake up in the middle of the night

thinking about what happened on the

14th of June. Does that still

happen?

Four days ago, I tripped

over... It is something that will be

there for a while, until we have a

roof over our heads, all of us,

there will not be any closure. Even

if we go for this therapy, if there

is no roof for us to call, this is

my home, there will not be any

closure.

When do you think that will

be?

It depends on the authority. But

at this stage, I think the Prime

Minister should try to step in

because we are really being abused,

is the word.

Why do you say that?

We

do not have our self-respect

anymore. No dignity. No pride.

Nothing. No privacy. We have lost it

all. Six months, this is supposed to

be Great Britain, not Africa. Even

in Africa, this would not happen

anymore.

Thank you very much for

talking to us. Thank you very much

for coming on our programme again.

That night, as the flames spread

across Grenfell Tower, people in

nearby pubs, churches and community

centres opened their

doors to help look after some of the

survivors who had escaped. In the

days that followed, those places

turned into volunteering centres,

the nearby Tabernacle Christian

centre was one of those places. Six

months on, our reporter went to

catch up on the work still being

done.

We still serving the survivors

because are still coming. We have

the clothes here and also other

donations given to us.

What is going

on over there?

The Salvation Army is

in partnership with us and they have

given out vouchers for winter

clothing. We have been in touch over

the weekend with the survivors,

booking appointments. For vouchers.

Quite a few have been asking for

winter clothes, codes, scarves,

gloves. Here we have clothes, most

of these was summer clothes, but we

have winter clothes among them. We

have toiletries, nappies. This site,

we have clothing for males, trousers

and other items the survivors will

go through.

What is in this gazebo?

This is where we store the food that

has been donated from supermarkets

and now some of the nonperishable

foods which have been donated by

stores like Waitrose and Sainsbury's

and Tesco so graciously.

Did you

think six months on since the fire,

in the lead up to Christmas, that

you would still be here with your

church being the donation centre for

survivors?

Absolutely not. We

thought all the survivors by then

would have been housed. The majority

of survivors are still in hotels. We

are here for the long run, as long

as the survivors need us. They are

still coming. They come for support,

comfort, prior. People just want to

come and talk. -- prayers.

Especially when you adjust up in a

hotel. Some are very depressed.

Coming here, they find solitude and

comfort.

-- especially when you are

still in a hotel. Let us talk to

pasta Derek. We broadcast from your

church, you kindly invited us in

five weeks after the fire -- Pastor

Derek. How would you assess how the

community is?

There is still a lot

of grieving, a lot of anger among

the survivors. One of the main

problem is the accommodation.

Apartments that have been bought and

yet there are only I think 42 that

are in temporary accommodation but

yet apartments have been bought, so

I am wondering why they are not

being housed.

We spoke to the leader of the

council earlier on and she said it

takes time to re-carpet and repaint.

Sometimes families were changing

their minds about moving and wanting

to stay where they work, which is

understandable.

You cannot rebuild

your life in temporary

accommodation. I understand the

logistics. 300 apartments are

bought. We have 210 families. We

know there are enough accommodation

for each and every one of them.

You

are bewildered by the fact that

people are not in permanent

accommodation yet.

Six months in a

hotel with children, some of them

are disabled. Depression has set in.

Did you say depression?

Absolute

depression. These survivors of

traumatised. Some are not receiving

the counselling they should be

receiving. We have over 100 families

coming in through our doors, wanting

items under nations, as well as

support and comfort. We are doing

our bit as the church to serve these

people.

Do you think the impact of

what happened that night in the

allows of the morning will be felt

for generations to come in the

community?

This has changed the face

of North Kensington. We were told

some time ago, I think it was 11,000

people who had been affected because

of Grenfell Tower. It is a colossal

amount of people. How do you go

about trying to counsel and support

the community that is traumatised?

Again, we must just tried to work

with the council to make things a

lot easier for the survivors to move

on in their lives.

Thank you for

talking to us again. Thank you very

much, Pastor Derek. We're going to

talk to many more people in the next

hour and a half of we head towards

the memorial service which begins at

11 o'clock. Coverage of that on BBC

One.

Time for the latest news.

Here's Julian.

A memorial service is being held

at St Paul's Cathedral this morning

for the victims and survivors

of the Grenfell Tower

fire in West London.

71 people

were killed when the fire tore

through the tower block,

six months ago today.

Members of the royal family,

including Prince Charles

and the Duke and Duchess

of Cambridge will be among the 1,500

people who are expected to attend.

Theresa May is due at

a summit in Brussels,

hours after Conservative rebels

in the Commons defeated

the Government in a key Brexit vote.

MPs backed an amendment giving

them a legal guarantee of a vote

on the final Brexit deal

struck with Brussels.

A third person has been charged

with the murder of four children

who died in a fire at a house

in Salford, in Greater

Manchester, on Monday.

The 25-year-old man who's

from the area has also been charged

with attempted murder and arson.

The medical charity, MSF,

says it believes more than six

and a half thousand Rohingya Muslims

were killed in the violence that

began in Myanmar in late August.

The estimate is based on interviews

with some of the 600,000

Rohingyas who've fled

to neighbouring Bangladesh.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

Let's get some sport

with Hugh Woozencroft.

England's batsmen have made

a positive start to the third

Ashes Test at the WACA.

Dawid Malan is closing

in on a century,

with Jonny Bairstow also

at the crease past

his half century.

England now 276 for 4.

Midfielder David Silva inspired

Manchester City to a record 15th

straight Premier League win -

4-nil at Swansea.

Manchester United won in second

but Arsenal were held at West Ham.

Four-time Tour De France Champion

Chris Froome insists his legacy

will not be tainted,

after he was found to have twice

the allowed level of a legal

asthma drug in his urine.

They now want more details from Team

Sky. Katie Taylor from Ireland had

to be at her very best as she

defended her lightweight title with

a unanimous points decision over the

American. That is all the sport for

now. We will be back with more after

ten o'clock.

Good morning.

This morning, we are live

from St Paul's Cathedral

ahead of a memorial service

for the victims of the

Grenfell Tower fire.

The chair of one of the residents'

association's said, "The memorial

is a chance for us all to come

together and remember what happened.

The people in Grenfell Tower

were forgotten about and ignored

before the fire and this is a chance

for people across the country

to unite and stand with us."

Let's talk now to Antonio Roncolato

escaped with his 26-year-old son,

Christopher, from the 10th floor.

Hamid Wahbi was the only one

in his flat on the 16th

floor during the fire.

He helped his neighbours escape.

They're telling their stories

to you today for the first time.

Also with us, Clarrie Mendy,

who lost her cousin Mary and Mary's

24-year-old daughter,

artist Khadije Saye.

Thank you so much for talking to us

on this day. The idea for this

National Service, and I can see you

are upset already, and I'm really

sorry for your loss. This idea came

to you in the summer, didn't it?

Yes, it came to me a few days

after... After the fire. I went to

mess -- Westminster to see Joan

Sinclair and ask that we have a

National Service as soon as

possible. I think this is what the

community need, the survivors need,

the bereaved families need. We just

want to know we are not alone and

there is support for us. Today, as

we will see, it is a day of people

coming and consolidating with us in

solidarity. It is a very emotional

day. I was here yesterday. The

rehearsals were beautiful. There is

something for everybody. We are a

big family. Not many of us are here

to represent, due to the restriction

of the tickets, which is a shame.

Here we are. I just hope everybody

will get something from it. As I

said, healing. I know the words that

Bishop and the Canon have gone out

of their way. I wanted to show that

adversity of multicultural

21st-century Britain and represent

all the different religious groups

of the tower taking it into

perspective with our cultures as

well. There is a wonderful mix to

this. A lot of people will get some

healing today for them as I said,

you can see I am crying already.

People have had all of this for so

long not knowing where we stand. We

have had meetings with the council.

It has been excused after excuse. We

need people to come clean. We don't

want a hill spread 25 years justice.

Everyone what happened. --

Hillsborough. People need to get on

with their lives. People here are

morning. They are morning but there

is still a fight. In normal

circumstances you can mourn. You

have to get up and fight for your

survival. The situation with

survivors in the hotel is not right.

I would not like to be in a hotel

with my children at Christmas. You

can even cook Christmas dinner. The

whole thing is wrong. The quicker

everything is just did -- adjusted

it will be for the better. Theresa

May is in a wonderful position

today. We do not have to beg for

everything. That is what it is seen

to be. The local community is still

suffering. Nothing has been

mentioned about them with the toxins

that are in the air. There is a

whole neighbourhood will stop it

seems nobody cares. Today I hope it

will not just be a case of words.

There need to be strong meanings

behind the words.

It needs to be

meaningful with no platitudes.

Not

just pretty words, we want

affirmation. Do you understand?

Knowing where we stand for the we're

not revolutionaries, it is just

standing up for our rights, basic

rights, especially in the wake of a

human public tragedy. There should

be more sympathy and empathy. We

would like to recent me as the

Government to adopt this charter

that is recommended by Bishop James

John after the Hillsborough disaster

to save bereaved families this pain

and anguish.

Let me bring in Antonio

and how meet -- Hameed. People will

have experience grief but the way it

is described, you are not only

grieving, you are having to fight

for survival. For respect, daily

existence. What would you say about

that?

It is the big day today. Today

we have to concentrate on thinking

about the people who are no longer

with us and support the people who

have lost their beloved ones. I

would say, for one day, we leave all

the politics and stuff like this on

the side and we get close. A group

of people as a community and be

together and show to the public that

we are here to help each other. We

want to raise awareness for the

public that this cannot happen again

in the future.

Never, ever. Are you

able to put politics to one side?

I

am here today to share all my

feelings with everybody. We are very

lucky to be here today. We never

thought we were going to make it but

we are here. I was living with my

mum, who is 90. She is still at the

hotel. She is not well. I did knock

at the door this morning at six

o'clock and she said she cannot make

it. I was expecting her to come with

me. We are going to go and share our

feelings with everybody inside will

stop what will be at the forefront

of your mind as the service is going

on, Hamid? We are going to go there

to let everyone know that we are

here. Our past has been taken from

us and we need our future. We want

to get on with our lives but it is

still on hold. Everything is still

on hold. To find the real trees, you

have to come to the survivors and

the bereaved people. That is the

only way you're going to find the

real things with what is going on.

Are things on hold with you?

Personally, things have moved a bit.

I have been lucky with my key

workers and the housing offices. My

case, my son, has moved into

temporary accommodation. He has been

edgy lately. Something good came

out. He has a flat. He has moved on.

Hopefully, all the residents, or the

other residents and people who have

more needs and different

requirements than myself. I really

feel that this should be moved as

quickly as possible before Christmas

so they can move on with their

lives.

We need things to be sorted

out as soon as possible. People are

getting very sick. As I said, not

from me, but everything is on hold.

We want to get on with our lives. I

have been working for all my life I

have been working. It is a matter of

sick and here we go. I have seen

nothing up to there.

Can I ask you,

Hamid, you helped people escape that

night...

Of course.

That is my duty.

When you think of that now, what

comes into your head?

Last Monday or

Tuesday, we went to the inquiry on

Monday or Tuesday. One guy on my

floor, that is the guy I'd told him,

where is your dad? He told me my dad

is frozen and he cannot walk. I

tried to help his dad and because of

the smoke I could not do it when I

turned my back I found the guy has

gone. He tore me last week I am

sorry. I remember when you are

trying to get out my dad from the

house will stop it is a kind of...

Our neighbour. We tried to help as

much as we can but what can we?

What did you say?

We do not want to

seem like beggars. This is the

21st-century. There is more that can

be done, really. Another country, we

would be put to shame. Britain,

21st-century Britain, multicultural

Britain, come on, we need to pull up

our socks.

Step up.

We are not

champions of the world in this

cause, really. I think the

Government needs to step up ASAP.

We're not going to turn

revolutionaries overnight, but we do

not want our hearts to be turned to

stone. I want to see joy. My pain is

your pain. My pain is even the

people looking at that tower every

day still breathing, what about the

Grenfell cough and the droopy eyes?

This needs to be addressed. Help us,

SOS.

People think very differently

about us, people from Grenfell

Tower.

We are not benefit street.

Self-employed.

I have people working

for me, now they are not working, I

am not working, I am not signing on,

I am working my life. People have to

understand. We have plenty of

educated people there and we are not

begging or asking for a favour, this

is not a favour, this is a very

serious situation and it needs to be

sorted out as soon as possible.

Fast

tracked.

After six months...

Disgusting.

Inside, there will be

1500 people, royals, political

leaders, yourselves, members of the

community, members of the emergency

servitors, representatives. What do

you say to them?

-- emergency

services. Thank you for supporting

us. They have compassion for us. Do

not just come... Make sure when you

leave here, your moral conscience

will maybe be further moving you to

do something ASAP. There is a lot

that could have been done. We did

not have to go to six months. What

has moved? Maybe a few people have

been... I would not so lucky.

Fortunate. People have suffered

worse than our sun they deserve to

be sorted out. -- worse than us.

Some are sick and traumatised. They

are out of work. We were inside the

fire. What about the people watching

from outside and the fire brigade

who came inside to help us? I met

with them on the 16th floor, they

are suffering.

Post-traumatic

stress, if we do not address this,

there will be psychosis soon.

Let us

help each other. Come on. It is a

matter of that we want to go and

have our life. We will start from

zero, move on, we do not want to get

stuck. Looks like we were just

putting us on hold. Life keeps going

on.

Thank you.

Solidarity...

I can

see that, I can feel that.

She has

been amazing.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

He was going to come

here...

Wahid. It will be a lovely

service. Let us hope we can have a

Merry Christmas and a beautiful home

for you and your mother and your

children, that is what I wish him

and his 90-year-old mother. If there

is such a thing as Father Christmas,

bring him on.

I did well, sending

the normal way. -- sending my mum

away. The last ten days of Ramadan,

I was just going to travel to Saudi

Arabia, the following day, after the

fire, but I am still here.

We are

running out of time. Thank you so

much. You can clearly see the love,

the solidarity, the strength they

get from each other, if not from

people in authority. As you know, 71

people died in the fire.

For each victim, there are several

relatives and friends

trying to adjust to life

without their loved

one, six months on.

We've invited some of them to pay

tribute using their own words.

Here are the letters written

by three loved ones to victims

of the Grenfell Fire.

Um, my name is Clarrie Mendy.

I'm a cousin to the late Mary Ajaoi

Mendy and Khadija Ellen Saye.

So, I'm Kenita and this

is my uncle, Gary Maunders.

My name is Ben Gabbitas

and my relationship to Sheila

is friend, soul partner,

and she was my mother in spirit,

is the way I like to describe it.

When people remember Mary Ajaoi

Mendy and Khadija Ellen Saye,

they may remember Grenfell Towers

and how they died.

When we think of them, we think

of the amazing flow of love.

Gary, you are our uncle, a kind,

caring, loving person.

We loved you like an older brother.

We had a bond because we was raised

in the same household as each other.

You were very charming and had

an old-fashioned nature about you.

Well, Sheila, that was quite a dash.

You always said it was

about the journey and not

the destination but no one,

but no one, foresaw this

as the destination.

Mary was an amazing

woman, full of life.

She was kind to everybody.

And everybody was

welcome at her home.

You always went out of your way

to help those that needed it,

especially the older generation.

You would say, "Good morning,

darling", and would help

them with their shopping

bags or trolleys.

Most of us all loved Mary.

And most of all, she loved us all.

You often said of stabbed teenagers

and young people killed,

"Have you ever noticed,

Ben, they always seem

to take the good ones,

the ones with so much light?"

So here it was, you, too,

and 70 lights taken that day.

You couldn't find another like you.

A rare, unique

within your own right.

To call you a chatterbox

would be an understatement.

You would talk our ears off

for hours but you were extremely

funny, wise and knowledgeable, too.

When we think of Khadija,

we remember her smile,

which lit up a room.

We remember her soft voice.

We remember her telling

us to take it easy.

We remember a niece, our cousin,

our sister and a friend.

One of your great lessons

you taught me was to see the good

that can come out of bad.

This, then, will be

a challenge like no other.

Words cannot describe

the pain in our hearts.

We don't even know how

to mend a heart that is

broken beyond repair.

You loved your mother

and your children dearly.

You would always check on them daily

to see if they were all right,

and to say that you love them.

Nanny wants you to know that

you were a lovely son.

Sorry, I need to stop.

Our hearts bleed with

sadness at your passing.

God took you because he saw

your heart and he knew

how special you were.

Khadija, you were truly

more than a billion.

Auntie Mary, for the first time

in my life, you are not there.

You're not a phone call away

or a train journey away.

Passing in your sleep,

we do not know for sure, but I hope

to God your guides and angels kept

you from the roar.

You wanted the best for everyone

and always told the younger children

of the family to behave and do

well in school.

Nanny wants you to know that

you were a lovely son

and you had a heart of gold.

We truly miss you.

It was a massive chunk of our hearts

that have been ripped out of us.

We don't know how we can

continue as a family.

Or how, as a family,

we can ever heal from this.

Our hearts will continue

to bleed for you both.

To say thank you for all you did

seems like some huge understatement.

Sometimes, there is no words

to describe such feelings.

You will always be remembered

and cared for in your memory.

I will miss our long

telephone conversations,

our trips to Limburg

and Meera, Cornwall and

around the country.

I, Betty, cry every night

for you, Mary and Khadija.

All the advice you gave me

and my children will stay with us

for the rest of our lives.

So now it has to be a project

in your name that I must

see through, friend,

soul partner, and mother

in spirit, too.

We hope you are at peace

and continue up in heaven

doing what you do best.

Forever loved.

We will carry on and we will carry

you wherever we go.

Your spirit will live through us.

We will always love you.

You were special and a special place

will always remain in our hearts.

Letters to loved ones

from Clarrie Mendy,

Kenita Spence and Ben Gabbitas.

Extraordinarily powerful, very, very

moving. In an hour's time at St

Paul's, the national memorial

service will begin for the victims

of their Grenfell Tower fire, many

residents are arriving already,

wandering up the front steps of St

Paul's, members of the emergency

services arriving too to take their

places inside the grand building of

St Paul's. This man lived with his

wife, daughter and steps in on the

15th floor of the power and we are

grateful you are talking to us

before you go inside -- and stepson

on the 15th floor of the tower. Who

will you be paying tribute to today?

Everyone, all my neighbours, all my

beloved neighbours who we lost that

night. I want just to say to them, I

am sorry. We didn't save you. I am

sorry we didn't know what was

happening around us. I am sorry we

were inside and we didn't know what

was going on really.

Do you feel

guilt about that?

Yeah. We didn't

know. We were inside, we didn't

know. We didn't know what was going

on around the building. But what I

believe, they are in the hand of

God. I believe what happened we will

never forget and I from this -- and

I promise all my life I will do the

best of me to get things better and

better in the right way. I will

never change my thoughts, I will

never forget, and it is just... How

I feel, it shouldn't happen, but

what I am feeling right now is...

How come we didn't know? How come

when I came out that night from the

building, I looked up at the

building, I realised, there are

people inside. That moment, it

was... It is not just pain, I can't

even speak. No, tremendous hurt,

tremendous grief. I want to say

sorry to them. I believe they are

standing now by the side of God and

I believe... I believe he will help

us to get justice done and I believe

we will make them proud and I

believe we will make them happy,

they are looking at us and seeing us

and they feel us and I believe

standing altogether to get things

right, to make it right, and to

secure everything in the right way

and this is what I believe.

That is

your promise.

This is my promise.

You know, on that day, I loved

someone behind me, I left Steve

behind me, I did not know he was on

the flat, he passed away that night.

The same floor. Until now, I feel

very bad. On the same floor. Until

now, I feel very bad for the

neighbours. They used to open the

door to me, say hello to me, the

children... It is massive. Something

we cannot forget. We witnessed.

I wish for the family, my neighbour,

their family, to keep going, to keep

the faith, to keep themselves

strong. We will support them. We

will be together on this until we

get that done properly.

Thank you

very much. I know you have to go

inside. We appreciate your time this

morning thank you for talking to us.

It is ten o'clock

morning thank you for talking to us.

It is ten o'clock.

Hello.

This morning, we're at

St Paul's Cathedral where members

of the royal family and the Prime

Minister will join families

of victims of the Grenfell Tower

fire for a memorial service, six

months after the devastating fire

which killed 71 people.

This morning survivors of the fire

have been telling us why the service

is so important to them.

It's about remembering the people,

my neighbours, my family.

it's about remembering

the people I used to help

get their shopping in the lifts.

It's also about bringing the people

who survived together.

It is about getting the chance to

see my neighbours for the first time

in some while.

Six months on and the pain of those

suffering is plain to see.

We do not

have self-respect anymore. No

dignity. No pride. No prissy. We

have lost it all. Six months. --

previously. This is supposed to be

Great Britain.

The service will give

thanks to everybody who assisted on

the ground at the time and since.

Including emergency services, the

community, public support workers

and volunteers.

It has changed the

face of North Kensington. We were

told some time ago in 11,000 people

have been affected because of the

Grenfell Tower incident. It is a

colossal amount of people. How do

you go about trying to counsel and

support a community that is

traumatised?

Here's Julian Worricker

with a summary of today's news.

A memorial service is being held for

the victims of the Grenfell Tower

fire.

Members of the Royal family,

including Prince Charles and the

Duke and Duchess of Cambridge wobbly

among the 1500 people who are

expected to attend. -- will be

among. The Metropolitan Police

Commissioner said her forceful do

whatever it takes to bring to

justice anyone committing criminal

offences in the fire.

My officers are doing everything

in their power to do a professional

and thorough investigation.

They want to do this

as well as we possibly can,

to give people the answers

to the questions that they have.

Theresa May is due at

a summit in Brussels,

hours after Conservative rebels

in the Commons defeated

the Government in a key Brexit vote.

MPs backed an amendment giving

them a legal guarantee of a vote

on the final Brexit deal

struck with Brussels.

One rebel, Stephen Hammond,

was sacked by the Prime Minister

as a party vice chairman

in the aftermath of the vote.

A third person has been charged

with the murder of four children

who died in a fire at a house

in Salford, in Greater

Manchester, on Monday.

The 25-year-old man who's

from the area has also been charged

with attempted murder and arson.

The medical charity, MSF,

says it believes more than 6,500

Rohingya Muslims were killed

in the violence that

began in Myanmar in late August.

The estimate is based on interviews

with some of the 600,000

Rohingyas who've fled

to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The Burmese armed forces have stated

that about four hundred people died,

describing most of them as Muslim

terrorists.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

Sport now with Hugh Woozencroft.

The crucial third Ashes Test has

begun at the Waca in Perth

with England needing to avoid defeat

to keep their hopes

of retaining the urn alive.

Having won the toss, England lost

key men. Jonny Bairstow pass the 75

mark. England ending the day on

305-4.

The four-time Tour de France

champion Chris Froome has told

the BBC he understands

people will be cynical

but insists his legacy won't be

tainted, after it emerged he had

double the allowed level of a legal

asthma drug in his urine

following a test during the Vuelta

de Espana, which he

won, in September.

Cycling's world governing body,

the UCI, wants more details

from the team but Froome

has not been suspended.

Manchester City have

extended their winning

Premier League run to

a record breaking 15 games.

All the football stories on the BBC

Sport website and app.

Good morning from St Paul's,

where the Grenfell community,

along with Prince Charles

and Camilla, Prince William

and Kate and Prince Harry,

are all coming together to remember

those loved ones who died

in the fire at Grenfell,

exactly six months today.

It is going to be

incredibly poignant.

Be music from different communities,

a steel band. The seats are filling

up inside. By 11 o'clock there will

be 1500 people inside. The Royals

are due to arrive just before 11am

for the will tell -- before 11am.

And we'll

bring it to you live at 11.

We can speak now to David Lammy,

the Labour MP for Tottenham.

He's campaigned on behalf

of residents in North Kensington.

One of his friends, the artist,

Khadije Saye, died in the fire.

Good morning. What does today mean

to you?

I think it is an appropriate

moment for the country, the

Londoners, to come together to

support these families, to remember

those lives and commemorate them and

to commit to continuing to ask the

important questions on behalf of the

victims over the coming months. Just

a really important moment for the

families and survivors.

When you

think of your friend, Khadije, how

do you think of her?

I think the

young woman who had same as to offer

her country and the world and her

life was cut off. I speak to her

father and her family. They are

really focused on those last moments

of her life. This is a very poignant

moment. In politics I am meant to be

a bit sort of objective. I guess in

relation to Grenfell Tower, because

I knew someone who died, I am pretty

engaged and pretty involved. I don't

know if I am pretty objective, I am

subjective about the manner of her

death.

Where do you think the

community is six months on?

You will

have viewers who have experienced

grief. They know the aftermath of

Greece comes in stages. There is

shock and bewilderment. -- grief.

Then you get a lot of anger and then

you get despairing depression. That

has really crept in for many, many

of the victims and families,

struggling to come to terms with

broken families, some that survived

and some that did not. In this

situation, a lot of repeat trauma

really. The building still stands.

It is a monument of death and, of

course, the aftermath of Grenfell

Tower, the housing situation, the

way people felt dealt with by the

state has been far from the best of

this country. It is a tough moment

for families of those victims, many

of whom I met this week.

We will

talk about mental health in more

detail. It has been such a huge

issue and so many people have been

affected. Let me ask you about the

preliminary hearings of the inquiry

which began on Monday. We heard

powerful appeals from lawyers

representing the families of

victims. For there to be a more

representative panel of judges.

Do

you agree with that? Yes, I do think

that is important. In the end we

hold these inquiries on behalf of

the general public, on behalf of the

Government and parliament, to get to

the important questions and what

happened. Most importantly on behalf

of the families and victims. The

families and the victims question

that representation. They want to

see a panel member that is

reflective of the community. They

want to be more deeply engaged.

Those who represent them, their

lawyers, they feel shutout. There

are some real issues on the

structure and the process that has

been setup.

Do you have any more

faith the inquiry?

You have to have

faith. It has only just begun.

Empathy, compassion and humanity

mean you have to have faith that it

will reach the right answers. It is

not an underestimation to say it has

not got off to the best of stops.

Thank you for talking to us this

morning. We appreciate it. I am

going to ask you to move back so I

can introduce our next guest. Ross

O'Brien is from the mental health

and well-being service. Mark Harris

is from the Samaritans. Clearly,

mental health is a huge issue.

Actually we can just see emergency

services arriving. Representatives

from the emergency services arriving

to walk up the steps of St Paul's

Cathedral to go inside. Before the

service begins at 11 o'clock. Life

in the shadow of that blackened

tower is a constant struggle, isn't

it?

It is a constant struggle. Every

time you go to the area it is

shocking that this reminder is

always there. It towers over you.

You can literally seeing and you are

reminded all of the time. -- see in.

With events like today, an

anniversary always brings everything

that happened into even sharper

focus than it is anyway. You are

talking about mental health issues

on a massive scale, loss on a

massive scale, trauma on a massive

scale.

The estimate is something

like 11,000 people were affected by

what happened that night was how

many referrals have you had?

So far,

since the day of the fire we have

seen over a thousand adults referred

200 children referred. And we are

reaching out to more every day. We

are knocking on doors, turning up at

various community centres and faith

centres and trying to engage and

support the community and be there

for them.

It is not only people who

escaped from the tower, it is people

who lived in the surrounding area,

people who lived further away than

that and saw what happened that

night by standing on the ground and

feeling helpless.

We are starting to

see a second wave. The people who

supported those people as well were

supporting the teachers and

supporting others, supporting as

many people who were also supporting

the people who were initially

affected as well.

The number of

people have talked to me about their

depression. They feel they are in a

depression for all sorts of reasons,

including the fact they are grieving

but also that they are not in a home

yet they feel they cannot again to

start to rebuild until that happens.

How can you help those people?

We

have seen lots of people who are

really keen to engage in therapy.

For them, at the moment, it is not

quite the right time. You have to

get the basic, fundamental needs

met. They need a home and finances

sorted.

That needs to be sorted

before they can deal with their

mental health?

That is one of the

things that people keep presenting

to us that they are seeking help is

that it might not be the right time

now. For us it is about being

constantly engaged with the

community. It has been an honour to

do that. The community has come

together really well. They are

looking out for each other and

supporting each other. They are

talking to us about what they want

as a service and we are able to

respond to that it is really

helpful.

What kind of help have you been able

to give?

For the most part,

listening, that is the Samaritans

service, at the time, it moved from

shell shock initially to the sense

of loss and starting to process

emotions. Then we were in some of

the hotels. Where people were

staying.

Where you are in the

reception, waiting for people? Were

you able to knock on doors?

We were

in the reception. We worked with the

hotel staff, they advertised the

service, they knocked on the doors,

people came down to us in reception.

More recently, we have been doing

training for Westminster council

staff and others, Citizens Advice,

to say, how do you actively listen

to someone and deal with someone who

is angry?

How do you deal with

someone who is angry, help someone?

You are massively respectful to them

and you hear what they are saying

and you give them time and space and

you completely validate everything

they are saying and the issue is,

for the council staff, they cannot

fix things immediately, so it is

trying to communicate to someone,

this is what we are doing, where we

are at currently. It is difficult.

What we can do as listening

volunteers is hold someone in that

space

space. As council staff can

you have a job to do.

Do you think

this is, as a resident said earlier,

the impact of what has happened will

be felt for generations, actually?

Absolutely. If you look at other

disasters, there has not really been

a similar disaster in the UK on this

scale, but if you look at other

disasters, the impact is there for

generations, looking back to Aberfan

com you still feel it felt among the

adult population, a traumatic event

for children that long ago. We

expect there will be an initial

massive piece of work in terms of

reaching those people, but the

community will be affected for such

a long time, we will have to be

there for them for that period of

time.

The same for your organisation

presumably as well?

Yeah,

completely. You have the physical

space, that has to be turned into

something, it can only be a memorial

garden, that has to be there, people

have to be able to go there, and the

service for us is listening, 24

hours a day. When they need to call,

it is free, always open. And

off-loading as and when you need to,

does not matter if it is 3am, we

know sleep patterns are not normal,

people are traits in the streets in

the dead of night, phone us up and

off-load -- people are traipsing the

streets.

Thank you very much, both

of you. The grim for health and

well-being service and the

Samaritans, thank you -- the

Grenfell health and well-being

service.

The many heroes of Grenfell Tower

fire will be celebrated today -

the emergency services,

the firefighters and the community

who rallied around together

to offer immediate help,

support and shelter, and who are

still doing so six months

on, as Noel Phillips reports.

As people frantically searched

for their missing loved ones,

the immediate help they received

in the aftermath of the fire

was from their community.

Please stop, just stop.

Clothes are going here.

Food only is going here.

The atmosphere of solidarity

saw thousands unite

to mourn with people here.

Volunteers from across the country

and as far as New York came to help

in whatever way they could.

I lived in New York when the towers

came down and it was very...

Reminiscent of that.

Just generally, you want to help.

You want to do whatever you can.

I've got a week off and I will just

give my time to do what needs doing.

Thanks to the community,

we are managing.

Millions of pounds were also raised

to support survivors.

Clothing, bedding and food poured

into local warehouses, churches,

mosques and community centres.

There were Muslim people

donating to churches.

I was one of them.

There were Christian people donating

to, you know, mosques,

knowing whatever is easy and closer.

The lights went off

in the staircase as well.

As local residents tried

to piece their lives back together,

a royal visit and thank