{UAH} The homes of rich people in Kensington should be SEIZED for Grenfell Tower residents made homeless by fire, says Corbyn
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The homes of rich people in Kensington should be SEIZED for Grenfell Tower residents made homeless by fire, says Corbyn
- Jeremy Corbyn has voiced anger over the devastating fire at Grenfell Tower
- Ministers facing questions over why they did not do more to avert the tragedy
- Theresa May has ordered a full public inquiry into how the disaster occured
- Labour leader says properties in Kensington could be seized for those displaced
The homes of rich people in Kensington could be seized for Grenfell Tower residents made homeless by fire, Jeremy Corbyn said today.
Mr Corbyn said the London borough was a 'tale of two cities' between a wealthy south and a poor north.
He suggested that 'requisitioning' vacant properties would be a solution to the shortage of available accommodation for those displaced.
'Properties must be found – requisitioned if necessary – in order to make sure that residents do get rehoused locally,' Mr Corbyn told a meeting of MPs.
'How is it acceptable that in London you have luxury buildings and luxury flats kept empty as land banking for that future while homeless people look for somewhere to live?'
The call came as Theresa May announced a full public inquiry into the deadly Grenfell Tower blaze.
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Jeremy Corbyn (pictured today speaking about the disaster in Westminster Hall) said the London borough was a 'tale of two cities' between a wealthy south and a rich north
Amid fears that the death toll could rise above 100, the PM spoke to firefighters and surveyed the charred remains of the Grenfell building
The Labour leader met staff and volunteers who have provided shelter for those affected by the deadly inferno
Labour MP for Tottenham MP David Lammy backed the call for properties to be seized
But she was rebuked for only speaking to police and firefighters when she visited the scene of the devastation today.
By contrast Mr Corbyn met survivors an hour later.
With fears the death toll could reach 100, Mrs May said the country 'owed it to the families' to uncover the truth about what happened.
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Ministers are facing mounting demands to explain why they did not do more to avert the horror.
PM'S RATINGS SLUMP AS CORBYN SURGES
The latest YouGov research underlines the stark turnaround in the leaders' fortunes
Theresa May personal ratings have plummeted while Jeremy Corbyn's popularity has surged since the election, according to a poll.
The Prime Minister's net favourability score has sunk from +10 in April to -34 this week.
In a stark reversal of fortunes, Mrs May's rating is now at the level the Labour leader was on in November last year.
The latest YouGov research show Mr Corbyn has secured his highest score to date after his popularity ratings surged from -42 in late April to +0.
A series of blunders are being blamed for the disaster, with speculation that cladding installed last year helped the blaze spread, and residents claiming there were no working fire alarms and no sprinklers.
Mrs May's chief of staff Gavin Barwell, who was housing minister until he lost his Commons seat last week, promised to respond to a major coroner's report which demanded safety improvements following a previous fatal blaze.
But little progress appears to have been made on an overhaul of building fire safety regulations.
It has also emerged that another former housing minister, Brandon Lewis, had suggested it was not the Government's 'responsibility' to ensure tower blocks have sprinklers.
As Chancellor Philip Hammond cancelled his keynote Mansion House speech in the wake of the tragedy, Mrs May said today: 'We need to know what happened, we need to know an explanation.
'We owe that to the families, to the people who have lost loved ones and the homes in which they lived.
'That is why I am ordering a full public inquiry so that we can get to the answers, we can find out exactly what happened.'
Mr Corbyn met the Bishop of Kensington Graham Tomlin outside St Clementís Church as he thanked the community for rallying round in the aftermath of the fire
The Labour leader offered a hug to councillor Mushtaq Lasharie who represents a community close to the scene of the fire
Mr Corbyn met survivors and families of those cause up in the tragedy during his visit this afternoon
The Labour leader travelled to the scene with shadow housing minister John Healey and the newly elected Labour MP for Kensington Emma Dent-Coad
The Prime Minister added: 'When I went to the scene and spoke to the emergency services, they told me that the way this fire had spread and took hold of the building was rapid, it was ferocious, it was unexpected.
A TALE OF NORTH AND SOUTH: THE DEEPLY DIVIDED BOROUGH OF KENSINGTON
The 2015 index of deprivation revealed the gulf in wealth between the north and south of Kensington. The dark red and orange areas are among the poorest wards in Britain
Kensington is among the most deeply divided parts of Britain.
Overall, the borough has the highest average salary of any patch in the country at almost £100,000.
But the headline figure hides that several wards in the borough are among the most deprived.
The 2015 Index of Deprivation ranker 11 out of the borough's 103 neighbourhoods among the 10 per cent of Britain's poorest.
The child poverty rate in the borough runs at 28 per cent and almost one in five residents has a low paid job - more than the rest of London as a whole.
In March 2015 it also had the fourth fastest rising rate of households in temporary accommodation.
Despite the crushing poverty in the north of the borough, the leafy southern end counts the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Kylie Minogue, Nigella Lawson and Jeremy Paxman among its residents.
'So it is right that, in addition to the immediate fire report that will be produced and any potential police investigation, that we do have a full public inquiry to get to the bottom of this.
'People deserve answers. The inquiry will give them.'
Asked why she had not met local residents, Mrs May replied: 'Well, I visited the scene of this terrible fire this morning.
'I wanted a briefing from the emergency services.
'They've been working tirelessly in horrific conditions and I have been overwhelmed by their professionalism and their bravery.
'I heard stories of firefighters running into the building being protected from the falling debris by police officers using their riot shields.
'And we thank all our emergency services for the incredible work that they have done.'
Speaking to locals in a walkabout of the area, the Labour leader said the 'truth has got to come out'.
Addressing a resident who said the investigation must not be kicked onto the long grass, Mr Corbyn said: 'I will speak up for you because we have got to get to the bottom of this.
'The truth has got to come out and it will.'
MPs gathered in Westminster Hall later for an ad-hoc sessions of questions to Fire Minister Nick Hurd about the blaze.
Normally there would be a ministerial statement in the Commons on a disaster of this scale, but as parliament has not officially resumed after the election yet that is not possible.
Mr Hurd described it as a 'national tragedy' and said a full search of the tower block was 'unlikely to be feasible for some time'.
MPs gathered in Westminster Hall this afternoon for an ad-hoc sessions of questions to Fire Minister Nick Hurd about the blaze
At least twelve people are feared to have died in the blaze at Grenfell Tower overnight
Fire crews are still trying to establish how many casualties there are from the deadly fire
Mr Corbyn told the MPs that hundreds of thousands of people living in tower blocks will be 'frightened, traumatised and very, very worried' following the fire.
He branded Kensington & Chelsea a 'tale of two cities' with poverty next to huge wealth - and suggested that housing should be 'requisitioned' to provide homes for those displaced by the fire.
The Labour leader said he 'feels very angry' that so many people have lost their lives in a tower block where the fire precautions did not work. He welcomed the Government's decision to establish a public inquiry but insisted it must be speedy and allow residents to fully take part, with legal aid provided if needed.
The tragedy means Mrs May is again scrambling to deal with a major crisis, after the election campaign was overshadowed by two terrorist attacks.
Critics are demanding answers on why expert advice that sprinklers should be made compulsory in tall buildings has not been followed. It is thought 4,000 tower blocks across the country do not have sprinkler systems.
Jeremy Corbyn comforted a local resident at St Clement's Church after he visited the scene
In this image taken by eyewitness Gurbuz Binici, a huge fire engulfs the 27-storey Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, White City
Many residents who gathered outside the smouldering ruins of the building said the fire had been caused by a faulty fridge in one of the flats, but the fire service told MailOnline it could not confirm the reports at this stage
Speaking to locals in a walkabout of the area, the Labour leader said the 'truth has got to come out'.
Addressing a resident who said the investigation must not be kicked onto the long grass, Mr Corbyn said: 'I will speak up for you because we have got to get to the bottom of this.
'The truth has got to come out and it will.'
Speaking to locals in a walkabout of the area, the Labour leader said the 'truth has got to come out'.
Addressing a resident who said the investigation must not be kicked onto the long grass, Mr Corbyn said: 'I will speak up for you because we have got to get to the bottom of this.
'The truth has got to come out and it will.'
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