'A human's right to live in safety'

PEOPLE HIT OUT AS COUNCIL ADMITS BUYING UNSAFE HOMES FOR THE GRENFELL SURVIVORS

- By ADRIAN ZORZUT

A WEST London council has admitted it “knowingly took some risks” when it bought 290 properties for survivors of the Grenfell tragedy, with many now deemed so unsafe they cannot be brought up to a reasonable standard for use as social housing.

Kensington and Chelsea Council said residents were moved on once issues were raised with the properties it purchased in haste after the fire in 2017 displaced a large number of Grenfell residents. Some were never occupied due to safety issues such as unusual layouts or fire escape problems, according to a council report.

The admission comes as the council seeks to sell off 14 of the homes because they are in such a poor state they cannot be brought up to standard, raising questions about council processes and a waste of taxpayer money when basic surveys could have picked up some of the worst issues.

Emma O'Connor, who escaped in a lift from the 20th floor with her partner, accused the council of failing to learn from its mistakes.

She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “They don’t investigate before they do something. Rush is the biggest red flag. You cannot rush fire safety.

“People’s lives mean more than money. If it takes a long time [to find a suitable property] so be it. It's a human right to live somewhere safe”.

Survivors group Grenfell Next of Kin said the admission was “the tip of the iceberg”, adding: “The decision made by the Tory Government in the immediate aftermath of the fire to leave the same negligent Tory council in charge of the aftermath with a blank cheque, without any oversight or scrutiny, was a grave misstep, harmful for the victims and irresponsible.