The London Assembly has urged prosecutors to decide whether anyone will face criminal charges over the Grenfell Tower fire before the disaster’s tenth anniversary.
Members backed a motion by 20 votes to one at a meeting on Wednesday 5 November, calling on the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to deliver its charging decisions before June 2027.
The motion welcomed the Metropolitan Police submitting all of its files on the fire to the CPS so that charging decisions can be made, and it noted the CPS’s commitment to reaching those decisions before the tenth anniversary of the fire.
James Small-Edwards AM, who proposed the motion, said: “Almost 10 years on from the Grenfell Tower fire, there still hasn’t been justice. Those who lost their lives, the survivors, their families and friends, the first responders and the entire community deserve justice and accountability. The wait has been far too long.”
He added: “Londoners also need to know that the lessons of Grenfell have been learned, and that the necessary action is being taken to ensure a tragedy like this can never happen again. Today, the Assembly sent a clear message: we stand side-by-side with the Grenfell community and want to see justice and accountability delivered.”
The motion’s full text records the Assembly welcoming the police files being handed to prosecutors “to allow them to make charging decisions, ensuring that investigation remains on track and that those responsible are held to account through the criminal justice system”, alongside the CPS commitment on timing.
The police submitted their files on 30 September, after an investigation led by a 220-strong team. The 20 files cover 20 companies and organisations and 54 individuals, with prosecutors asked to consider charges including corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, health and safety offences, fraud and fraud-related offences, and misconduct in public office.
The London Fire Brigade was among those referred. Its Commissioner was notified by the Metropolitan Police on 1 October that a file had been submitted to the CPS for consideration in respect of the Brigade.
The fire broke out in the 24-storey tower block in North Kensington on 14 June 2017 and killed 72 people. The public inquiry into the disaster, which concluded in 2024, found that the fire had been avoidable and identified failures across government and the private sector.
No charging decisions have yet been announced, and no individuals have been named by the CPS in connection with the fire. The Assembly’s resolution records the CPS’s commitment to decide before the anniversary, but it does not change the legal test prosecutors must apply when deciding whether to charge, and it sets no further public timetable beyond that commitment.
The CPS will now consider the material provided by the Metropolitan Police to decide whether there is sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges. The tenth anniversary of the fire falls on 14 June 2027.
