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5. Single Point of Failure

The government - why didn鈥檛 civil servants act on warnings about dangerous cladding?

Why didn't the civil service act on warnings about combustible building materials?

You鈥檝e probably not heard of Brian Martin but he鈥檚 central to the story of Grenfell. The civil servant responsible for the fire safety section of the building regulation guidance, he has described himself as the 鈥渟ingle point of failure鈥.

Kate talks to someone who tried to raise the alarm with him, and asks why he didn鈥檛 act on warnings about dangerous cladding.

Under the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition government, this was a time of deregulation and cutting red tape. Did these attitudes to health and safety prevent action being taken?

Presenter: Kate Lamble
Producer: Josephine Casserly
Production coordinator: Janet Staples
Audio engineers: James Beard and Gareth Jones
Story consultant: Simon Maybin
Editor: Penny Murphy

Available now

15 minutes

Last on

Fri 23 Aug 2024 13:45

Broadcast

  • Fri 23 Aug 2024 13:45