Grenfell Tower is set to be demolished, as bereaved families were reportedly informed by Angela Rayner.
Rayner, who serves as the deputy prime minister and secretary of state for housing, met with relatives and survivors on Wednesday evening, where she conveyed the announcement that the tower will be carefully taken down, according to a representative from Grenfell Next of Kin.
Further information is anticipated to be released by the government later this week. In the past, officials stated that no alterations would occur at the site until after the eighth anniversary of the fire, which resulted in 72 fatalities in June 2017.
There are worries regarding how many family members were consulted prior to this new determination. Many have insisted that the building should remain until there are criminal prosecutions related to the deficiencies that led to the tragedy. For some, the nearly decade-long wait for justice has been described as “unbearable.”
Grenfell United, an organization representing some survivors and families affected by the disaster, expressed on Wednesday evening that the perspectives of the bereaved are being overlooked.
“We have communicated this to every housing secretary since the beginning: it is crucial to engage meaningfully with the bereaved and survivors before making a decision about the tower,” the group stated.
“Angela Rayner could not provide justification for her choice to demolish the tower.”
The remnants of the tower have remained standing since 2017, covered with a large green heart and the phrase “forever in our hearts.”
A representative for the government remarked: “The deputy prime minister’s main focus is to meet with and reach out to the bereaved, survivors, and the surrounding community to inform them of her decision regarding Grenfell Tower’s future.
“This is an extremely personal issue for all impacted, and the deputy prime minister is dedicated to ensuring their voices are central to this matter.”
The final report of the Grenfell Tower inquiry, released in September, determined that the tragedy stemmed from “decades of failures” by both the government and the construction industry to address the risks posed by flammable materials in high-rise buildings.
The west London tower block was clad in flammable materials due to the “systematic dishonesty” of companies involved in the production and sale of the cladding and insulation, according to inquiry chair Sir Martin Moore-Bick.
The “simple truth,” he stated, is that all the fatalities were preventable and that residents of the tower were “severely let down” by the authorities, which he attributed mostly to incompetence but in some cases to dishonesty and greed.
In May 2024, prosecutors and police communicated that investigators would require until late 2025 to finalize their inquiry, with decisions regarding potential criminal charges expected by the end of 2026.
In a separate initiative, the Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission has been working on plans for a permanent memorial in the vicinity of the tower. In a report released in 2023, the commission proposed a “sacred space” intended to be a “tranquil area for remembrance and reflection.”
The commission anticipates that the memorial design will advance sufficiently to allow a planning application to be submitted by late 2026, having recently shortlisted five potential designs.
