Today the coroner has set a date of 14th January 2013 for the start of the inquest into the Lakanal House fire. The inquest is set to end before Easter 2013.
Harriet Harman MP, who attended the pre-inquest review at Lambeth Town Hall today, said:
“It’s deplorable that it’s taken so long for the inquest to be heard. Now the important thing is for the inquest to answer the very big questions:
“Why did the fire spread when the building’s design is for fires to be contained in flats?
“Why, when the fire did spread, did the emergency services’ instructions remain to tell people to stay in their homes rather than trying to get out of the block?
“If those people who lost their lives had left their homes, would they have lived?
“Are the faults that allowed the fire in Lakanal to spread the same for Marie Curie House?”