MP steps up pressure on government to bring in independent oversight of Grenfell inquiry recommendations

Ms Eshalomi, chair of the committee, and its other members endorsed these calls in a letter to the government in May, which set out their inquiry findings and recommendations.

In its response to the committee, sent in July and published this week, the government did not commit to setting up an independent monitor.

It hinted, however, that changes to how inquiry recommendations are rolled out could be brought in further down the line as part of an overhaul of the process.

The government wrote: “The Cabinet Office is leading work to consider how oversight of inquiry recommendations can be improved more broadly.

“Looking ahead, the government is actively exploring broader reforms to enhance transparency and accountability in how it responds to inquiry recommendations and as part of wider inquiries reform.

“This substantial programme of work, led by the Cabinet Office, aims to improve how we identify wrongs and uncover the truth more swiftly. While this work is still in its early stages, we will continue to keep the committee informed as it progresses.”

The government also claimed publishing public inquiry recommendations to its website will be an “enduring mechanism” for tracking how it puts these into place, and highlighted a dashboard launched in July.

It also pointed to recommendations from other inquiries that parliament be responsible for scrutinising how inquiry proposals are rolled out.

In its May letter, the HCLG committee said it did not believe government plans to publish progress updates on its website and brief parliament annually would go far enough.

Yet the government’s response did state that it would consider the points raised by the House of Lords Statutory Inquiries Committee, as part of its work with parliament.

The HCLG Committee had also suggested that a recommendation for parliament to set up a new public inquiries committee be considered alongside the national oversight mechanism.

Survivors and bereaved families of the Grenfell Tower fire have described the government’s decision to block the reintroduction of the Hillsborough Law as an “outrage”. The anger from the Grenfell United group came after Labour MP Ian Byrne introduced the original version of the law to the House of Commons for a second reading in July, but it was blocked by a government whip.

The Hillsborough Law refers to the Public Authority (Accountability) Bill, which was first tabled by Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, in 2017. It would establish a statutory ‘duty of candour’ that would make it a legal requirement for public authorities to tell the truth and co-operate with official investigations and inquiries.