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The UK government has pledged to implement the investigation recommendations, and will move to ban businesses named in the public investigation into the fatal 2017 Grenfell Tower fire from a public agreement.
A six-year investigation into the tragedy details “decades of failure” by the government and the construction industry that led to a fire that killed 72 people in a recently renovated tower block in West London in September This was the 1,700-page report.
The government said Wednesday that it would accept and proceed with all 58 referral recommendations and propose a wiped change in how construction materials are being tested and regulated.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: “Manufacturing companies that include Alconic, Kingspan and Cerotex. The report found that they acted in systematic fraud.”
“Their dishonorable mercenary actions have made money in front of the people. … It has fatal consequences.”
Angela Rayner will speak at the House of Commons on Wednesday © House of Commons
The government’s proposed reforms include “both civil and criminal penalties” for misleading practices or product safety failures by building materials manufacturers. However, authorities acknowledge that current rules give limited authority to keep up with businesses named in Grenfell’s report.
Metropolitan Police are also investigating the tragedy, but in September it said it would take 12-18 months to review the investigation report. The investigation said it covered 19 organizations or businesses and 58 individuals as suspects.
The government said Wednesday that it will use its power under the procurement laws that have passed recently to investigate subsidiaries of Arconic, Kingspan, Corgobyne and four other companies for interpretation from government contracts.
The ban disqualifies these companies from central government contracts and serves as guidance for all public institutions. The government expects that even if a prohibited company does not have a direct contract, it should not be used as a subcontractor for public works.
Seven years after the Grenfell fire, successive governments have been criticized for being too late to respond and lacking harsh penalties on the companies involved.
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The investigation report denounced the US-based Arconic, which provided the main cladding used by Grenfell Tower, saying, “based on a statement on fire performance that is known to be false, We provided a deliberate strategy to continue selling (cladding materials) in the UK. .
According to the report, Cerotex said at the time that Corgovine owned its insulation safety “began to mislead customers and the wider market,” while Kingspan said it was on fire safety. He said he provided misleading information. That insulation product.
Arconic, purchased by US private equity group Apollo in 2023, denied misleading behavior and rejected allegations that its subsidiary sold unsafe products. Celotex said it has “reviewed and improved process control.” . . To meet industry best practices.” Kingspan said its “completely unacceptable historical failure” has been found to be the “cause” of the tragedy.
A government paper on reforming product safety regulations said the investigation “points to a culture of immunity and can misrepresent the safety of a product without fear of criticism.”
This paper outlines plans to address the remaining “significant gaps” of regulations, including the “availability and accessibility” of product information and the scope of current rules.
Rayner also admitted that the housing sector “could not act on known risks” as the government pledged to “cautiously review” how it operates.
