Jeremy Corbyn urges Prime Minister to 'get a grip' on tower block evacuation as thousands forced from their homes

Corbyn: Labour leader tells Theresa May to 'get a grip' on tower block evacuation situation
Sky News
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Jeremy Corbyn has urged the Prime Minister to “get a grip” on the tower block evacuation and said an emergency meeting should be held to co-ordinate a stronger response.

The Labour leader called on Theresa May to hold an emergency Cobra committee to tackle the “nationwide threat” caused by 27 buildings failing fire safety checks.

It comes after Camden Council announced a mass evacuation after cladding concerns were raised following the Grenfell Tower disaster in west London last week.

Twenty-seven tower blocks in 15 local authority areas have now failed cladding safety checks amid a national operation launched after the inferno in north Kensington.

Up to four thousand people were evacuated from the tower blocks
EPA

Mr Corbyn urged the Government ensure local councils are provided with “all necessary support” to deal with the scale of the challenge swiftly.

“The council has taken a difficult decision on the advice of fire safety experts, but the safety of residents must always come first,” he said.

He added: "This is now a nationwide threat and the Prime Minister needs to get a grip and lead a national response, including convening the Cobra committee to coordinate Government and public action.

"I urge the Government to make sure all necessary support, including, crucially, financial support, is urgently made available to councils across the country so they can deal swiftly and effectively with the scale of the fire safety challenge."

The Prime Minster said local authorities were being urged to send in samples of cladding to be tested and "immediate action" would be taken if they were found not to meet fire safety standards.

She said: "The Government is working with those local authorities affected by this issue to ensure that they're able to do what is necessary on the ground to reassure people about the safety of their blocks, if necessary to evacuate people, and take action to make those tower blocks safe.

"The Government is supporting local authorities to do that and together we are making sure that the resources are there to ensure that what is needed to keep people safe is done."

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