Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report

Mary Kelly Foy Excerpts

Wednesday 26th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mary Kelly Foy (City of Durham) (Lab)]

The report from the Grenfell Tower inquiry is utterly scathing about the role of central Government and their obsession with deregulation. The drive to scrap so-called red tape was a key failing, which led to such a terrible incident and the avoidable loss of life. Will the Deputy Prime Minister confirm to the House that that approach has been ditched in relation to policies concerning fire safety, building safety and the construction sector?

[Angela Rayner]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right to highlight that just about every system failed, as I outlined in my statement. Everybody needs to understand what led to what happened on that night in Grenfell. Action has been taken, and the regulatory system is not the same as the one in place back in 2017. There have been a number of Acts of Parliament, which have meant that there is more instruction and more legal requirements for building safety. We will continue to update that, and we have legislation going through at the moment in Parliament to hopefully deal with social landlords and give renters more protection, too. We know there is much more for us to do, and I hope that we will continue to work across the House to put safety at the heart of everything we do. The legacy of Grenfell should be that we take notice and do not just say warm words at this Dispatch Box, but take the action needed to protect people.