Andy Roe: Grenfell firefighter who revoked 'stay put' policy is new London Fire Brigade boss
The appointment comes after it was announced Dany Cotton would be stepping down at the end of December in the wake of criticism.
Tuesday 10 December 2019 14:18, UK
Andy Roe, who revoked London Fire Brigade's "stay put" advice to residents during the Grenfell Tower blaze, has been named its new commissioner.
His appointment comes after City Hall announced Dany Cotton would be stepping down at the end of this month in the wake of criticism over the initial response.
Former British army officer Mr Roe, who joined the LFB as a firefighter in 2002 and has progressed through the ranks, will start the role on 1 January 2020.
He became assistant commissioner in January 2017 and made the decision to revoke the controversial "stay put" instruction minutes after becoming incident commander on the night of the fire on 14 June that year.
The first report from the Grenfell Inquiry found the LFB's preparation for a tower block blaze such as Grenfell was "gravely inadequate" and its lack of an evacuation plan was a "major omission".
It was said by Sir Martin Moore-Brick - who led the inquiry - that more lives could have been saved if the "stay put" policy had been abandoned sooner.
The high court judge was critical of Ms Cotton's "remarkable insensitivity" for stating in her evidence that she would not change anything the brigade did on the night of the fire.
Seventy-two people were killed in the blaze in North Kensington, west London.
Following his new appointment, Mr Roe said he would be "working tirelessly" to deliver the recommendations of the report.
He said: "It is an enormous privilege to be offered this opportunity to lead London Fire Brigade into a new decade.
"My priority is to protect and serve all Londoners and make sure the capital's fire and rescue service is the very best it can be.
"We have some real challenges ahead, but I'll be working tirelessly with the brigade, the mayor and London's communities to ensure we deliver on the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry report."
Mr Roe is to lead the production of the next London Safety plan.
London mayor Sadiq Khan said he was looking forward to working with Mr Roe on "swiftly" transforming the brigade.
He said: "The Grenfell Tower Inquiry report made it clear there were institutional failures that meant, while firefighters performed with great courage and bravery, the overall response to the disaster was not good enough, and there are significant lessons for London Fire Brigade."
Ms Cotton had become the capital's first female fire chief in 2017 and had been due to retire in April 2020 after 32 years of service.
The 50-year-old agreed to bring forward her retirement to the end of this year "to enable a timely handover" to the next commissioner.
She commented that she was "proud" and "honoured" to have served London and to have stood "shoulder to shoulder" with fire service staff during her career.