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May rejects Corbyn’s call for sprinkler funding
Theresa May cited four Labour councils which have so far decided not to fit sprinklers in high rises, as she rejected Jeremy Corbyn’s call for mass retrofitting today.
The prime minister clashed with the Labour leader on the issue at Prime Minister’s Questions this afternoon, a week after Labour launched a campaign calling for £1bn of spending to fit sprinklers in all high-rise social housing blocks.
Rejecting this call, Ms May cited Haringey, Lewisham, Lambeth and Islington – Mr Corybn’s local council – who she claimed have all been lukewarm on proposals to retrofit their high rises with sprinkler systems.
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She said: “Perhaps [Mr Corbyn] should look at what Labour councils have said about this. Haringey Council rejected calls to fit sprinklers, saying what matters is introducing the right safety measures.
“Lewisham Council say they need to weigh up the issues because fitting sprinklers can involve cutting through fire compartmentation – another safety measure – while Lambeth Council said there are issues retrofitting sprinklers and questions about how effective they are and even Islington Council say they need to look at how effective sprinklers would be.”
Islington immediately hit back, telling Inside Housing Ms May’s comments "do not paint the full picture".
A spokesperson added: "Islington Council is actively looking into the effectiveness of fitting sprinklers in the borough’s council tower blocks. Our stance on this is clear in a statement we gave on June 29, and remains the case."
The other three councils have been contacted for comment.
In response to Ms May, Mr Corbyn said: “The coroner after Lakanal House said fitting sprinklers would be the right thing to do, the chief fire officer thinks it would be the right thing to do.
“Those local authorities that have asked central government for support to retrofit sprinklers have all been refused by her government.
“Surely we need to think about the safety of people living in socially rented high rise blocks.”
Inside Housing’s Never Again campaign, launched in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, calls on the government to provide funding to retrofit sprinklers in high rises.
Housing minister Alok Sharma has so far refused requests for funding or borrowing capacity to fit sprinklers. He told Nottingham Council sprinklers were “additional, not essential” in a letter leaked to Inside Housing in September.
At Prime Minister’s Questions, Mr Corbyn also called on Ms May to reform Universal Credit. Ms May responded by saying that rent arrears among claimants on the reformed benefit tend to reduce over a four-month period.
It comes as some national newspapers report government sources claiming the six-week wait will be dropped.
Never Again campaign
Inside Housing has launched a campaign to improve fire safety following the Grenfell Tower fire
Never Again: campaign asks
Inside Housing is calling for immediate action to implement the learning from the Lakanal House fire, and a commitment to act – without delay – on learning from the Grenfell Tower tragedy as it becomes available.
LANDLORDS
- Take immediate action to check cladding and external panels on tower blocks and take prompt, appropriate action to remedy any problems
- Update risk assessments using an appropriate, qualified expert.
- Commit to renewing assessments annually and after major repair or cladding work is carried out
- Review and update evacuation policies and ‘stay put’ advice in light of risk assessments, and communicate clearly to residents
GOVERNMENT
- Provide urgent advice on the installation and upkeep of external insulation
- Update and clarify building regulations immediately – with a commitment to update if additional learning emerges at a later date from the Grenfell inquiry
- Fund the retrofitting of sprinkler systems in all tower blocks across the UK (except where there are specific structural reasons not to do so)
We will submit evidence from our research to the Grenfell public inquiry.
The inquiry should look at why opportunities to implement learning that could have prevented the fire were missed, in order to ensure similar opportunities are acted on in the future.
