Survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire have urged ministers to urgently strip flammable cladding from hundreds of tower blocks across the country, saying it is unacceptable that people still live in homes wrapped in materials similar to those that burned so fiercely on 14 June 2017.



Karim Mussilhy, whose uncle died in the blaze, and Natasha Elcock, who escaped from the 11th floor, made the demand at a rally in Parliament Square attended by people who escaped the blaze and the families of victims.

“They should ban the cladding full stop,” said Mussilhy. “We still have death traps out there in London. Let’s make those changes now and give people the assurance they are safe in their homes. Sprinklers need to be added and the cladding removed.”

The lives of Grenfell Tower: the 71 victims of the fire Read more

Elcock said: “We don’t want the people who died a year ago to have died in vain. There are also people still living in blocks with this cladding. We want to ensure that people in social housing don’t get treated like we did.”

There are 306 residential blocks more than 18 metres in height that are clad in aluminium composite panels similar to those at Grenfell and that have failed government fire tests. The cladding remains in place on 54 social housing blocks and dozens more private apartment towers across England. The cost of replacement has been put as high as £1bn.

The government has said it is the responsibility of landlords to replace failed cladding, but it is keeping this position under review. Many blocks remain untouched because of legal disputes between freeholders and leaseholders over who should pay. The government has ordered a review of building regulations from Dame Judith Hackitt, who is expected to report back this week.

There is widespread concern at Westminster and among survivors that Hackitt will not recommend a ban on the use of combustible cladding and will say materials of “limited combustibility” should still be allowed to be used.

A public inquiry into the Grenfell blaze is due to begin next week. Survivors successfully lobbied Theresa May to widen the inquiry panel to examine the broader reasons behind the disaster.

Monday’s rally showcased continued distrust of the authorities among some in the Grenfell community. Speakers described officials as “aliens” and “androids”, and the crowd chanted: “No justice! No peace!”



In the Commons, MPs debated proposed measures to increase community confidence in the public inquiry. Many voiced concern that parliament and government had already lost the confidence of the Grenfell residents.

David Lammy, who lost two friends in the fire, said 72 households from Grenfell were still living in hotel rooms and 64 remained in temporary accommodation.

Referring to the survivors’ campaign for an inquiry panel, he said: “I regret that people who are in grief and in so much pain have had to organise and campaign to ensure their voices have been heard.

“Theresa May talks about burning injustices, but this injustice burned. I remind the government of the words of Neville Lawrence [the father of Stephen Lawrence] in 2012: ‘The loss itself combined with the lack of justice means I have not been able to rest all this time.’”

Kwasi Kwarteng, the Conservative MP for Spelthorne, said his party had to do more than “give the impression” it cared about the people affected by Grenfell.

Jess Phillips, the Labour MP for Birmingham Yarley, said: “I ask the government to be a parent to these people. We have failed in the past to stop people feeling like they are a bother. There is a class issue where people feel they recognise hierarchy and can’t speak up. We have to make sure we never act supreme over these people.”

Her speech was greeted by a round applause from the public gallery, which was filled with survivors of the blaze.

• This article was corrected on 17 May 2018 because the original gave Jess Phillips’ surname as Philips and her constituency as Yardley Wood.