Met police vow to go through Grenfell report 'line by line' to 'secure justice for those who died'
4 September 2024, 13:00
The Metropolitan police have vowed to go through the final Grenfell fire report "line by line" to "secure justice for those who died".
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Those affected by the tragedy in June 2017, which saw 72 people killed, face a wait of another year to 18 months to find out whether any criminal charges will be brought.
It comes after a damning final report on the fire found that it was the result of "decades of failure” by central government and those in positions of responsibility in the construction industry.
Police and prosecutors said in May that investigators will need until the end of 2025 to complete their inquiry, with final decisions on potential criminal charges by the end of 2026.
Read more: Outside of Grenfell tower ‘was effectively covered in petrol’ says firefighter who tackled inferno
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy said: “The publication of today’s inquiry report is a significant milestone for those deeply affected by the tragedy.
"The thoughts of the Met are especially with the bereaved, survivors and residents as well as the wider Grenfell community. We remember with much sadness all those who lost their lives.
"The report is direct, comprehensive and reaches clear conclusions.
"Our police investigation is independent of the public inquiry. It operates under a different legal framework and so we cannot simply use the report’s findings as evidence to bring charges.
"To secure justice for those who died and all those affected by the fire we must examine the report – line by line – alongside the evidence from the criminal investigation.
"As I said previously, this will take us at least 12-18 months.
"This will lead to the strongest possible evidence being presented to the Crown Prosecution Service so they can make charging decisions.
"I can’t pretend to imagine the impact of such a long police investigation on the bereaved and survivors, but we have one chance to get our investigation right.
"We will be thorough and diligent in our investigation while moving as swiftly as possible. We owe that to those who died and all those affected by the tragedy."
Grenfell - Who were the 72 victims of the fire
The Met said in May that its separate inquiry into the fire had resulted in 27,000 lines of inquiry and more than 12,000 witness statements.
A total of 19 companies and organisations were under investigation for potential criminal offences, along with 58 individuals, and more than 300 hours of interviews took place.
Potential offences under consideration included corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, perverting the course of justice, misconduct in public office, health and safety offences, fraud, and offences under the fire safety and building regulations.
It comes as Wednesday's report found that those who made and sold the cladding and insulation products were “deliberately dishonest”, and engaged in “deliberate and sustained strategies to manipulate the testing process, misrepresent data and mislead the market”.
Grenfell Tower Inquiry chairman Sir Martin Moore-Bick said the deaths of the 72 people in the fire were "all avoidable".
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Up to the end of March this year, the Met had spent £107.3 million on their inquiry, and in May there were 180 investigators working on the case.
Officers retrieved more than 152 million files, gathered 75,000 photos and 27,000 exhibits.
Forensic teams also spent 415 days examining the tower itself, gathering evidence including the charred remnants of cladding panels.
