Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether visas have been issued to members of families of Grenfell Tower fire victims attending the Grenfell Tower Inquiry that are limited to a period shorter than the expected length of that Inquiry; and, if so why.

We will do everything we can to support the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry and enable Core Participants to attend. Where attendance at the Inquiry is raised, visas have been issued, including outside of the Immigration Rules, for periods of up to six months.

The Grenfell relatives’ policy introduced on 11 October 2017, was extended on 26 June to allow family members of victims or survivors with Core Participant status or who are called to give evidence, to extend their stay for further six-month periods. This is to allow relatives to remain at least until the anticipated close of the Inquiry oral evidence sessions.

Relatives who do not have CP status, or who wish to apply for a longer period of stay, may wish to consider whether they meet the requirements of existing published policies to come to or remain in the UK.