Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a new duty of care and statutory obligation for people employed in a local authority to cover incidents which result in death.

Local authorities have broad independence to organise their approach in the most appropriate way to serve their local communities and it would be for them, as independent employers, to make decisions on introducing new duties of care. However, although local government is independent of central Government, where there is evidence that a council is at risk of failing its best value duty, the Secretary of State may use his powers under the Local Government Act 1999 to intervene. The independent Grenfell Recovery Taskforce (2017-2020) was appointed in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy where it supported and challenged the council and provided assurance to Government.

The Secretary of State remains committed to supporting the Grenfell community and will continue to work closely with partners including those at the council to bring about lasting change for all those affected.