Government responds in full to Grenfell Tower Inquiry, setting out tough new reforms to fix building safety and strengthen accountability
Source: gov.uk (2025-02-26)

In the full response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s final report today (26 February), the government has accepted the findings and sets out its plans to act on all 58 recommendations.

Sweeping construction, building and fire safety reforms set out as government accepts findings and takes action on all 58 recommendations in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s final report

Tough new rules on construction product safety, backed by a strengthened regulator to stamp out bad practice and drive higher standards

Debarment investigations to be launched for seven organisations named in the report using tough new procurement powers

Stronger, more enhanced protections for social tenants, including by empowering them to challenge landlords and demand safe, high-quality housing

Tough new reforms to ensure all homes are safe, secure and built to the highest standards will benefit millions of people across the country as the government takes decisive action to tackle the failures that led to the devastating Grenfell Tower tragedy – which resulted in the loss of lives of 72 innocent people.

In the full response (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/grenfell-tower-inquiry-phase-2-report-government-response) to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s final report today (26 February), the government has accepted the findings and sets out its plans to act on all 58 recommendations, driving a sweeping transformation to enhance building and fire safety standards.

Under the proposals, industry will be held to account for failure, with new regulatory measures to prevent a tragedy like the events at Grenfell Tower from ever happening again.

The Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said:

The Grenfell Tower tragedy claimed 72 innocent lives in a disaster that should never have happened. The final report exposed in stark and devastating detail the shocking industry behaviour and wider failures that led to the fire, and the deep injustices endured by the bereaved, survivors, and residents.

We are acting on all of the Inquiry’s findings, and today set out our full response, detailing the tough action we are taking to drive change and reform the system to ensure no community will ever have to face a tragedy like Grenfell ever again.

That means greater accountability, stronger regulation, and putting residents at the heart of decision-making. We must deliver the fundamental change required. We owe that to the Grenfell community, to the country, and to the memory of those who lost their lives.

The Grenfell Inquiry’s final report exposed a system that ignored safety risks and failed to listen to residents. The report laid bare ‘systemic dishonesty’ in the industry, failures in the construction sector and by successive governments, and poor regulation in the run up to the disaster.

The government has apologised on behalf of the British state for its part in these failings and introduced significant changes to fix the worst issues exposed by the tragedy.

Reforms set out today include:

A new single construction regulator to ensure those responsible for building safety are held to account.

Tougher oversight of those responsible for testing and certifying, manufacturing and using construction products with serious consequences for those who break the rules.

A legal duty of candour through a new Hillsborough Law, compelling public authorities to disclose the truth, ensuring transparency in major incidents, and holding those responsible for failures to account.

Stronger, clearer, and enforceable legal rights for residents, making landlords responsible for acting on safety concerns.

Empowering social housing residents to challenge landlords and demand safe, high-quality housing, by expanding the Four Million Homes training programme. Make it easier for tenants to report safety concerns and secure landlord action by taking forward the Make Things Right campaign.

Ensuring lasting transparency and accountability by creating a publicly accessible record of all public inquiry recommendations.

As well as changes in regulation, in December 2024, the government launched its Remediation Acceleration Plan which sets out tough new measures to get buildings fixed quicker and ensure rogue freeholders are held to account.

Building Safety Minister Alex Norris said:

The Grenfell Tower fire was a preventable tragedy, and the failings it exposed demanded fundamental change.

Our response today to the Inquiry’s findings sets out a comprehensive plan to reform the construction sector, strengthen oversight and make sure that residents are the priority when deciding on building safety issues.

We will continue working closely with industry, local authorities and the Grenfell community to make sure these reforms deliver real, lasting change and rebuild trust.

Supplier Accountability

Today the government set out the next steps of its review to identify where the Inquiry’s report found failings by specific named organisations in relation to the Grenfell fire. New powers under the Procurement Act will be used to investigate seven of the organisations criticised in the report. If certain grounds are met, their names will be added to a published debarment list which must be taken into account by contracting authorities when awarding new contracts.

A legacy of justice for the Grenfell community

The government remains fully committed to supporting the bereaved families, survivors and residents long-term, as well as to working with the independent Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission to ensure a fitting and lasting memorial, determined by the community. This will serve as a permanent tribute to honour those lives lost and those whose lives were changed forever.

The transformation set out today is not only about fixing the failures of the past but about ensuring a safer future for generations to come. The highest safety standards will be embedded into the 1.5 million homes the government is committed to delivering this Parliament, ensuring that every new home meets robust safety requirements.

The government response makes clear there is still much more to do and is committed to taking decisive action in response to every recommendation.

Notes to editors:

The government’s progress towards implementing Inquiry recommendations will be published every quarter from mid-2025. We will also provide an annual update to Parliament to ensure wider scrutiny of the pace and direction of work.

We will deliver reform using a phased approach over the course of this Parliament, bringing together the recommendations directed at government and wider reform as coherent packages. The first phase (2025 to 2026) will focus on making sure that we effectively deliver our current programme of regulatory reform and change. The second phase (2026 to 2028) will focus on having fully developed proposals to deliver recommendations and wider reform, including via legislation. From 2028 onwards, the Government will focus on implementing these reforms.

We will keep the new system under review to evaluate its effectiveness and ensure it is delivering the intended improvements to residents’ lives. We will make sure that we are taking on residents’ feedback as part of this.

This response marks the start of a new relationship between government and industry that is based on transparency, clarity, collective responsibility and external scrutiny. We will hold actors in the system to account, effectively enforce standards, steward the highest standards of culture and behaviour and facilitate transparent conversations. However, we also expect industry to take responsibility to instil this change.

Safe housing is not a privilege but a fundamental right, and these reforms will ensure that right is upheld in every community. A green paper (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/construction-products-reform-green-paper) is also being launched today which includes detailed proposals for system wide reform of the construction products regime.

Debarment investigations into the organisations are set out in today’s Written Ministerial Statement.

The government will continue to support for the Metropolitan Police’s independent investigation, ensuring that those responsible for the failures leading to the tragedy are held to account.

Other measures include:

Raising standards by consulting on a new College of Fire and Rescue later in 2025 to improve training and professionalism of firefighters.

Stopping unqualified individuals from making critical fire safety decisions, by legally requiring fire risk assessors to have their competence certified.

Continuing implementation of new Residential PEEPs policy to improve the fire safety and evacuation of disabled and vulnerable residents in high-rise and higher-risk residential buildings, engaging with relevant stakeholders on the implementation.