Residents have written to Theresa May asking to be consulted on terms and scope of investigation and choice of chair, but No 10 has rejected request

Survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire are demanding a say in the scope and setup of the inquiry into the disaster, including over the choice of the judge appointed to chair it.

Residents in the area acknowledge that such consultation would be unprecedented in such a public inquiry, but say it is necessary to restore local trust in the authorities.

A group representing the Lancaster West Estate surrounding the tower, which includes some survivors of the disaster, has written to Theresa May to “demand that our voices are heard and fully included in the public inquiry”.

The letter welcomes the inquiry and the government’s apparent commitment to listen to residents’ concerns, but it says it should demonstrate this by consulting residents over the terms of reference of the inquiry and the choice of the chair, the counsel to the inquiry and composition of the advisory panel.



However, No 10 rejected the request, citing rules on public inquiries. A Downing Street spokesman said: “We’ve been clear from the outset that we wish the residents to be consulted on the terms of reference of the inquiry. As for the appointment of a judge in a public inquiry, it follows a very specific set of rules. Essentially, the lord chief justice recommends someone to the prime minister, or whoever that inquiry is reporting back to – in this instance it’s the prime minister.”

Asked when a chairperson would be appointed, he said: “We’re making progress and we hope to announce it in due course.”

May ordered a full public inquiry after visiting the scene of the disaster, which killed at least 79 people.

The residents’ letter demands a comprehensive investigation into the historical background to the fire and the government’s failure to act on recommendations from previous tower block blazes such as the one at Lakanal House in south London, which killed six people in 2009.

But the group also demands the inquiry should cover the local and national failures in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.

The letter states: “The investigation must leave no stone unturned: it must identify each and every individual and organisation who must bear responsibility and accountability for this tragedy and the mishandling of the aftermath.”

Pilgrim Tucker, a housing campaigner who has been advising residents since the fire and helped to draft the letter, says a group representing the bereaved families and survivors is expected to issue similar demands this week.

Speaking to the Guardian, she said: “The survivors think they are not going to be organised enough to speak as one group until Wednesday. We are expecting them to issue a very similar statement. We are in touch with them and have sent them a copy of our statement, so it may well be identical. It will certainly be similar.”

She admitted it would be unprecedented for survivors to be consulted on the scope and the personnel of such an inquiry, but added: “This is an unprecedented situation.”

She said: “The residents really want an effective inquiry that can go ahead with a chair that they can trust and have faith in. A great deal of trust has been lost, in the aftermath particularly. So residents do feel it is very, very important that they have as much of a say as possible.

“If it is done properly, consultation shouldn’t slow up the process. The most important thing is that it is a good, thorough public inquiry.”

Tucker confirmed residents had been in touch with a number of high-profile lawyers, including Michael Mansfield QC.



Mansfield told Sky News on Monday: “We want to ensure the people most affected have a say in the breadth of those terms of inquiry and that’s why I was asked to go down and meet everybody last week.”