Grenfell Tower Memorial (Expenditure) Bill

Baroness Hazarika Excerpts

2nd reading & Report stage & 3rd reading & Committee negatived
Tuesday 14th April 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hazarika (Lab)]

My Lords, it is an enormous privilege to take part in this thoughtful debate. I remember the shock of witnessing the charred husk of Grenfell Tower as I drove across London to do the paper review on Sky News. I remember being on air, and it was incredibly difficult to process what had just happened, in this day and age, in a residential building. It was a moment and a tragedy that none of us, whether we were journalists or anyone else, could really get our heads around—72 people losing their lives, in this day and age. They were not just statistics, as we have heard, but men, women, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, aunties, uncles, and so many children and babies who perished in what must have been unimaginable fear, confusion, bewilderment and pain that night.

I have been thinking about the tragedies that live on in history, the ones that we think change things, the ones that herald a new era of health and safety, and change. I was thinking, for example, about a tragedy that I spend a lot of time thinking about for various reasons: the “Titanic”.

As much as we talk about systemic failures—we will come on to discuss that, as my good friend, my noble friend Lady Hyde, just said in her excellent speech—the staying power of remembrance is about those human stories, people and personalities, such as Raymond Bernard, known as Moses to his friends, who had moved to the UK from Trinidad in 1969. He worked as an electrician and a part-time DJ. His relatives said that he

“had long, flowing locks like the free-thinking lion that he was”.

The wee girls Hania Hassan, aged three, and her sister Fethia, aged four, known as Fou-Fou, died along with their mum, Rania Ibrahim. Their dad and Rania’s husband, Awadh, said his life had “fully stopped” since the fire.

The Choukair family lived on the 22nd floor. Bassem died alongside his wife Nadia and their three girls Zainab, Mierna and Fatima. Bassem worked at Marks & Spencer and was described by his colleagues as a dedicated man who never took a day off, such was his pride in his work. His mother-in-law, Sirria, died alongside them. Sirria had come to this country from Lebanon back in the 1960s. She worked at the Royal Marsden Hospital, where she became close friends with her boss, a lady called Maria Del Pilar Burton, who also lived in Grenfell Tower and who died in hospital six months after the fire.

Anthony Disson, the retired lorry driver, lived on the 22nd floor. His son said of him that he was

“always there to help anyone, no matter who you were or where you came from”.

Ligaya Moore, the Filipino pensioner loved her 21st-floor flat and was so proud of it because, she said, it made her feel like she was

“on top of the world”.

The artist and photographer Khadija Saye lived and died with her mum, Mary Mendy, that night. Khadija was a great talent and her work was displayed at the Venice Biennale and Tate Britain after her death.

Gary Maunders, aged 57, was remembered by his family as a man with a great personality and as a devoted Manchester United football supporter.

Sheila, aged 84, had lived at Grenfell for 34 years. Sheila was full of life and fit as a fiddle, often being seen cycling around or doing yoga daily. She was a keen swimmer at the Kensington Leisure Centre until she was 80 years old.

Steven Power lived on the 15th floor. His daughter said her dad was a keen fisherman and DJ, and had a style which was like a

“West Indies man trapped in an Irish man’s body”.

Steven’s best pals were his three dogs, who also died with him that night in his flat.

These are just a handful of the stories behind that number of 72—the number of people who died that night. As we have all been discussing, we must remember and honour every single one of them. We must also honour what Grenfell Tower represented. In an often toxic, polarised world, we are often told, particularly online, that London, our capital, has been invaded by outsiders; that it is a violent cesspit and a crime-ridden, nasty and unhappy place. But we in this House all know that Grenfell—the Grenfell that we have all got to know though the work we have done—told a very different story. The globe resided there, with people from all over the world who came to London to work very hard, like Bassem, and make a better life for themselves alongside Londoners who lived in that building. They found in that tower block such riches: friendship, kinship and community in life and then, tragically, in death. Grenfell is a reminder of resilience and unity in a very divided climate, of hope and of the best of humanity, particularly in the aftermath and the days afterwards.

I very much welcome this Bill and the many wonderful, thoughtful and really moving contributions that we have heard, particularly from my noble friend Lord Roe. I think we were all extremely humbled by his story, his bravery and his lived experience. He powerfully reminded us of our privileges and responsibilities.

We all agree, though, that this memorial, however it takes shape, must be guided by survivors, families and the local community. As we have been discussing, the legacy must be more than simply memories. It must be about learning the right systemic lessons for the future and about justice, which means prosecutions. Like so many of the big scandals of our generation, including Horizon, nobody senior and very well paid ever seems to be held properly accountable. Every single one of these deaths was avoidable. As the inquiry said, everyone who died in the fire had been failed by those responsible for keeping them safe.

I welcome the words from the Minister and hope that she will have heard many of the questions. I am sure she will agree with us all that these reports and recommendations must not become just dusty tomes on the shelf of history. We must never allow a tragedy like this to happen again.