Day: July 4, 2017

    The government has defended the appointment of a retired appeal court judge to lead the inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire and hinted that his remit could be widened, after he faced calls to resign from two Labour MPs. Five days after the appointment of Sir Martin Moore-Bick as head of the inquiry, the MP for Kensington, Emma Dent Coad, and the new shadow fire minister, Chris Williamson, called for him to resign, citing scepticism about him from survivors and frustration at the apparently narrow remit of the inquiry. The justice secretary and lord chancellor, David Lidington, defended Moore-Bick’s appointment and insisted he would consult residents before agreeing the scope of the inquiry. All the latest news, views and opinion on the Grenfell tragedy After meeting resid...

    A terrified teenager plunged to her death from a fourth floor window in front of her distraught family as she lost her grip while trying to escape a fire raging in her bedroom. Meilan Duong has been named as the youngster with a a heart of gold who died in the blaze in east London yesterday morning - just a fortnight before her 18th birthday. Horrified onlookers said the young girl, wearing just her underwear, was clinging on outside her window screaming for help as the inferno raged inside. One witness claimed she had tried to climb out using a blanket or rope on to the balcony on the floor below, but was forced to let go after her hair and the rope caught fire. Next door neighbour Shopba Begum, 36, described the teen she believed was attending sixth form college as a lov...