Grenfell death toll rises as Corbyn blames austerity
Police reveal the number of dead has increased, as the Labour leader links the tower block fire with Tory austerity in PMQs.
Wednesday 28 June 2017 16:31, UK
Jeremy Corbyn said the Grenfell fire had "exposed the disastrous effect of austerity" as he clashed with Theresa May during the first PMQs since the General Election.
It came as police said the death toll in the tower block fire on 14 June had risen to 80 people.
The Labour leader said the disaster should serve as a "wake-up call", while the PM hit back with an attack on the Tony Blair years.
The Prime Minister's Questions session was especially rowdy at times, with Mr Corbyn facing shouts of "shame on you" from Tory backbenchers as he attacked the Tory austerity. The PM was heavily criticised for her deal with the DUP.
Mrs May said that cladding samples from 120 tower blocks, in 37 local authority areas, have now failed flammability tests - a 100% failure rate.
Mr Corbyn said: "When you cut local authority budgets by 40% we all pay a price in public safety.
"What the tragedy of Grenfell Tower has exposed is the disastrous effect of austerity," he added, to jeers from the Conservatives.
"This disregard for working-class communities, the terrible consequences of deregulation and cutting corners - I urge the Prime Minister to come up with the resources needed to test and remove cladding, retrofit sprinklers, properly fund the fire service and the police so that all our communities can truly feel safe in their own homes.
"This disaster must be a wake-up call."
Mrs May hit back by saying that cladding of tower blocks had not started under her Government or the coalition government.
"The cladding of tower blocks began under the Blair government," she said, before going on to say the Labour government introduced changes in the regulations on safety inspections.
"In 2005 it was a Labour government that introduced the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order which changed the requirement to inspect a building on fire safety from the local fire authority - which was usually the fire brigade - to a responsible person," the PM said.
Mrs May also appealed for unity and calm as investigations try to ascertain what happened in the fire.
"There are real issues here - we are not going to get to the truth by pointing fingers, we will by calm determination," she said.
The PM said 65 offers of temporary accommodation have been made to families and nearly £1.25m had been paid to families as part of discretionary fund.
And another £1m was being given to charities to help them help families.
Mrs May was asked if the cladding was legal. She said: "My understanding is that this particular cladding was not compliant with the building regulations."