Grenfell Tower survivors shut out of first council meeting amid fears of protest

Survivors of the Grenfell Tower disaster have been banned from attending the first meeting of senior councillors since the fire over fears of “disruption”.

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) said Thursday’s cabinet meeting will be held in private, chaired by the under-fire council leader.

The decision was made after attempts by protesters to storm Kensington Town Hall on June 16, two days after the tragedy.

Councillors will be convening to discuss the Grenfell Tower fire, according to a notice on the local authority’s website, joined by support officers and “invited guests (if any)”.

The notice said: “Please note this meeting will be held entirely in private session, pursuant to Standing Order 31.01, in the light of the risk of disruption (as witnessed on Friday 16 June) and consequent security and public safety concerns.

“As such it will be open only to council members, support officers and invited guests (if any).

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“The public minutes of this meeting will be published, in due course, on the council website.”

It is unclear whether any survivors have been invited to the meeting as “guests”.

RBKC has come under intense criticism for its response to the crisis, with many residents claiming they had been left to fend for themselves.

Its chief executive, Nicholas Holgate, quit his post last week, allegedly under pressure from Communities and Local Government Secretary Sajid Javid.

Calls have been made for the council leader, Nicholas Paget-Brown, to follow, with London Mayor Sadiq Khan demanding the resignation of the entire council leadership.

On June 16, dozens of protesters infiltrated the authority’s building in west London as anger boiled over about its handling of the situation, with crowds yelling: “We want justice now.”

Top pic: Rex