Call for harsher penalties for corporate negligence after Grenfell fire

The report highlighted the findings of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and the struggle to hold firms linked to the tragedy accountable.

It said: “Disregard for the construction industry’s recommended standards of practice operated as a pattern rather than an exception. 

“The inquiry condemned ‘persistent indifference’ of the tenant management organisation, ‘systematic dishonesty’ of product manufacturers and ‘decades of government failure’. 

“Yet, the response has been inadequate – criminal investigations are still pending, the newly introduced Building Safety Act has ‘not survived its first contact with reality’ and progress on essential corporate due diligence is dragging.  

“A lack of robust corporate accountability mechanisms in English law makes it difficult to draw direct links between implicated firms and the fire, obscuring their involvement, relations and responsibility.” 

Suggested improvements that could be more effective for both Grenfell and future cases include legal frameworks that more accurately map corporate structures, intervene sooner in the corporate chain of actions and provide a more effective sanction for breach.

Leela Jadhav, a researcher at Common Wealth and author of the report, said: “In the eight years since the Grenfell Tower fire, there has been little to no accountability from the firms responsible for the flammable ACM [aluminium composite material] cladding.  

“We need to see reforms that create a framework in which this impunity is no longer tenable.  

“That means, at the very least, sanctions such as permanent debarment, unlimited fines and disqualification of directors for 15 to 30 years.   

“The fire at Grenfell Tower was made possible by a system that prioritises profit over people, and that knows corporate impunity is embedded in our business models.   

“Frameworks such as corporate manslaughter employ too high a bar for liability, meaning firms that should be responsible for negligence can avoid legal accountability. 

“Grenfell must be a turning point. The companies responsible for flammable ACM cladding must answer for the series of actions that allowed this disaster to happen.”  

A government spokesperson said: “We are committed to ensuring that what happened at Grenfell is never forgotten and to deliver the change needed so it can never happen again.
“We can now take tougher, broader action against supplier misconduct using the Procurement Act’s debarment powers.

“By holding organisations to account, we will ensure our supply chains are secure and can deliver growth and renewal for working people through our Plan for Change.”