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Jeremy Corbyn MP,
Leader of the Labour Party, speaking at Labour’s Make Homes Safe launch today, said:
We are here today less
than 150 days after the country woke up to the devastating news of the fire at
Grenfell Tower.
It was a fire that
shocked the whole country.
A 24 storey tower
block subsumed in flames. Whole families, adults and young children alike,
trapped inside the tower with no chance of escape.
The scenes inside that
tower would have been unimaginable hell.
Firefighters entered
the burning building nonetheless at huge risk to themselves, saving many lives.
But far too many, at least 80 people, were beyond rescue.
On the morning after
the Grenfell Fire I visited the scene and I talked to those who lived in the
tower and the surrounding area.
They were in shock and
they were grieving. People simply did not believe that such a horrifying event
could take place in 2017, in the UK’s richest borough, in the 5th
richest nation on earth.
But tragically it
didn’t happen by chance but because of shockingly avoidable political
decisions, driven by a cruel and failed economic ideology.
The country was
shocked and the local community was hurting but it was this shock and pain that
prompted such an inspirational response from the local community in this part
of West London.
It was a response
stirred by the shared grief of innocent adults and children having their lives
taken from them in the fire.
Stirred by the pain of
seeing that burning building, knowing there were people trapped inside and
stirred by the anger of knowing that working class voices had been ignored once
again; and that a tragedy of this shocking scale had been allowed to happen.
Although the local
council of Kensington and Chelsea has faced criticisms for its response to the
fire, other local authorities, such as here in Hammersmith and Fulham, deserve
to be acknowledged for their efforts to help those affected by the fire.
Whether it was running
fundraising events or directly offering the use of their own council services
and council officers free of charge, it was this council, along with others
including my own, that did what it could to help those in need.
Local organisations
and community groups have also played a huge part in the response. Queen’s Park
Rangers Football Club for instance managed to raise almost one million pounds
for legacy projects that will leave a lasting impact in the area around
Grenfell.
Combined with the
efforts of individuals, charities and local small businesses, this response was
a heartening example of the unbreakable strength of communities and sense of
solidarity in this hugely diverse and multi-faith area of London.
On the morning that I
visited Grenfell I also had the chance to talk to some of the firefighters who
battled that deadly inferno for hours.
Utterly exhausted,
these were the women and men who saved large numbers of people – adults
and children.
I asked them why they
did it? Why did they put themselves in such danger, saving the lives of people
who they’ve never even met.
They answered without
any hesitation: “We do it because it’s our job”.
Because on that night,
firefighters of the London Fire Brigade did do their job.
Firefighters across
the country have faced the harsh reality of politically driven austerity.
Along with the other
emergency services across the UK they have been forced to deal with repeated
budget cuts since 2010.
In the last seven
years 10,000 frontline firefighter jobs have gone; equivalent to one in six
positions.
This is a staggering
figure and is compounded by the loss of fire stations, equipment and the loss
of almost a third of fire safety inspectors in the same period, with some areas
such as West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, which covers the city of Leeds, having
lost as many as 70 per cent of its inspectors.
Indeed, because of the
continual loss of firefighters’ jobs, if the fire at Grenfell had occurred
outside of London there would not have been enough firefighters in the vicinity
to tackle a blaze of that size.
That is why Labour is
committed to recruiting 3,000 new firefighter jobs with a full review of
staffing levels.
This is essential if
we are to improve response times and ensure the fire and rescue service has the
resources it needs to do the job – which they do with such professionalism
– of keeping us safe.
As firefighters
themselves say: if we are serious about reducing deaths and injuries from fire,
we need a co-ordinated approach across government. We need a well-funded fully
staffed fire and rescue service but what is also needed is a strong focus on fire
prevention.
We must make sure that
nothing like the fire at Grenfell Tower can ever happen again.
But to make sure it
doesn’t we need action and we need action now.
Of course we are all
waiting for the result of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry but there is some action
that we believe the government could, and should take immediately.
The retrofitting of
sprinklers in all high rise social housing is something that could make a vital
difference to people’s safety.
The evidence is clear:
where sprinkler systems have already been fitted, injuries sustained from fires
have been cut by approximately 80 per cent and deaths from fires have almost
been eliminated entirely.
But don’t just take my
word for it.
Take the word of the
Chief Fire Officers Association. They support retrofitting because they
recognise that sprinklers are both the most effective and the most efficient
method to quell fires which occur in high rise buildings.
Take the word of the
London Fire Brigade; the very people who risked their lives at Grenfell Tower
and risk their lives every single day to put out other fires across this city,
who have repeatedly called for retrofitting of sprinklers.
And take the word of
the Coroner in its 2013 report after the fire at Lakanal House who recommended
the retrofitting of sprinklers in all high rise residential buildings.
Two Conservative
governments in succession have failed to act on that Coroner’s report.
We said after that
dreadful fire at Lakanal House in 2009 we would never allow anything similar to
happen again, and yet here we are, eight years later, after an even worse
avoidable fire.
The evidence is
overwhelming. When almost every authoritative source on the matter is saying
the same thing: that retrofitting of sprinklers is necessary in high rise
housing.
This measure is just
common sense and will protect thousands of lives.
It is our duty to
listen to this clear and unambiguous advice.
Retrofitting of
sprinklers is something that many Local Authorities know is necessary to ensure
the safety of residents in high rise social housing. But with their budgets
slashed by an average of 40 per cent since 2010 it is something that very few
of them can afford.
A small number of
Local Authorities such as the London Borough of Croydon have managed to find
the funds to retrofit sprinklers. But of course on councils’ shoe string
budgets, doing this can mean cuts to other vital services.
That is why people
across the country are now looking at central government to act.
The government tells
us time and time again that there are difficult choices to be made. “We are all
in this together” they used to say.
And yet while people
are living in potential death-trap homes without essential safety protections
such as sprinklers, it is an obscenity that we have super rich elites and major
corporations who are allowed to avoid paying their taxes. There can be little
disagreement. The government must get its act together, take on the tax
avoiders and put the billions of pounds that is being taken from the pockets of
the British people back into the public services and safe homes we all so
desperately need.
Social housing in this
country has been badly and dangerously neglected for far too long.
Deregulation imposed
by successive governments has caused a shocking collapse in standards.
While luxury
accommodation proliferates across our big cities far out of reach of the vast
majority of the population, the poorest in our country are forced to live not
just in dilapidated run-down housing, but also in dangerous housing.
Time and time again
this government has shown itself to be callous and indifferent to working class
concerns.
But now we are asking
this government to do something positive for those who live in social housing.
With the budget
approaching imminently the government has a genuine opportunity to make a real
difference to people’s lives by making available the government funds that
local councils are crying out for to improve the safety of high rise residents.
It is the primary
responsibility of any government to ensure the safety of its citizens and we
believe it is therefore the responsibility of the Prime Minister and the
Chancellor to make this money available to local authorities and devolved
administrations across the whole of the UK.
We must be serious
about people’s safety and governments cannot protect people on the cheap.
We see ourselves as a
civilised society. We know that as a nation we should provide universal
healthcare for the sick, decent pensions for the elderly, good quality
education for every child to get on in life, but we also need to ensure that
everybody has a home that is not just secure but also safe.
Funding retrofitting
of sprinklers is an immediate step that Theresa May can take in the Autumn
Budget.
It will ensure that
high rise residents can sleep more safely in their beds.
That is why today,
Labour is launching our campaign to Make Homes Safe.
The campaign’s aim is
for sprinklers to be fitted in all social housing throughout the country which
is 30 metres or above – around ten or more storeys.
We are asking for the
public’s support to make sure the government listens to the concerns that we
share with tower block residents, the Fire and Rescue Service and other
professionals.
Retrofitting of
sprinkler systems is a basic demand but it is one that will save lives if the
government decides to make it happen.
Grenfell was an
avoidable tragedy. It did not have to happen and it would not have happened if
adequate precautions, including sprinklers, were in place.
So please, sign our
letter and help us make sure that residents of high rise social housing can
sleep safely in their beds, safe in the knowledge that they are being listened
to.
Thank you
ENDS