Angry Grenfell residents tell judge 'we need someone real'

Angry Grenfell residents have told the inquiry chair they "need someone real" and questioned his ability to "do them justice" in the final meeting ahead of the investigation.

There have also been calls for Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the retired judge leading the inquiry into the disaster, to step down and for greater ethnic diversity on the panel.

During the consultation, one of the first members of public to speak said: "I don't think you are going to do us justice. I'm just watching you here. We need someone who's real."

Sky News Correspondent Gerard Tubb who was at the meeting said: "At times it descended into chaos, with people shouting over one another.

"But the panel led by Sir Martin Moore-Bick did a remarkably good job of calming down some of the more passionate voices."

During the meeting, one woman asked: "Would the residents get the justice they deserve?"

The panel inquiry chairman replied: "All I can ask is to give us a chance."

Someone else asked if the report would be acted on, making reference to the Lakanal House fire in 2009, in which six people were killed.

Following that fire in Camberwell, south east London, there were calls for sprinkler systems to be retrospectively fitted, however nothing was done.

Sir Martin replied: "What happens as a result of my report is not in my hands I'm afraid."

He went on to promise that the inquiry would look into the specification of the cladding and insulation fitted during the renovations to the tower.

Once the report has been produced, it is the Government who will make decisions on future actions.

Reacting to calls for the panel to better reflect the "diversity" of those on the west London estate, barrister Peter Herbert, who is representing some of the Grenfell families, told Sky News: "Fifty years ago it may not have mattered that you had a white high court judge and an all-white inquiry team.

"But in the London of 2017, 20 years after the Stephen Lawrence inquiry met with a diverse panel, it is absolutely essential that this community - one of the most diverse in London - sees and hears from people who look and sound like them and understand what it's like to live in a tower block."

Meanwhile, police have said that 40 victims have been formally identified.

However, officers have recognised the fact that there are 41 named victims in total, after Grenfell resident Andreia Gomes, who escaped from the fire with her husband and two daughters, gave birth to a still born son, Logan, following the fire.

More than 80 people are believed to have died in the fire on 14 June.