Grenfell Tower: Almost £21 million spent on keeping survivors in hotel rooms
GETTY Kensington and Chelsea council has paid £20.9m in hotel bills between last June and mid-February
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) paid £20.9million in hotel bills between the fire last June and mid-February, according to a Freedom of Information request. A further £8 million was spent financially supporting families and individuals who lost everything, dozens of whom have now spent nine months living in hotels. RBKC has been heavily criticised for the length of time taken to find permanent new homes since the west London inferno left 71 dead and hundreds destitute on June 14. Kensington MP Emma Dent Coad said architects working on the surrounding Lancaster West estate during the 1970s estimate it would have cost around £500,000 to build Grenfell Tower. The 24-storey block was constructed between 1972 and 1974, meaning in today's money the sum would be as high as £6.2 million, less than a third of the council's hotel expenditure.
GETTY A further £8m was spent financially supporting families and individuals who lost everything
I spend a great deal of time visiting displaced families in hotels, and without exception they want permanent homes which suit their needs, but are not being offered anything suitable Emma Dent Coad
The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, show that between June 14 2017 and February 15 this year, RBKC spent £20.9 million on rooms at 53 hotels for residents of Grenfell Tower and evacuees from the Lancaster West estate. It is understood the Government will meet approximately half the cost of the hotel bills and financial support. Ms Dent Coad condemned the findings and called for commissioners to be drafted in to run the council rehousing drive. She said: "Kensington and Chelsea Council tax payers will be shocked to hear that our wasteful and incompetent Council has already spent nearly £30 million keeping survivors and bereaved families in hotels. "The Tower would have cost in the region of £500,000 when first built. It was a very solid construction built to last 100 years. I can't look at it now.
"I spend a great deal of time visiting displaced families in hotels, and without exception they want permanent homes which suit their needs, but are not being offered anything suitable. "Their lives are not only on hold; for many this has lost them jobs and businesses, and destroyed their ability to work or study. "I cannot understand why the Government hasn't sent in commissioners to take over the re-housing process." But deputy council leader Kim Taylor Smith hit back at the Labour MP, who is also an RBKC councillor, questioning whether "she would prefer us to not spend money on giving people a roof over their head". He pointed to the 307 homes secured by the council at a cost of £235 million as evidence that efforts were being made to accelerate the rehousing process.
Out of the 209 households which required new properties in the wake of the fire, 185 have accepted the offer of a temporary or permanent home and 126 have moved in, according to the latest council figures. This leaves 24 families or individuals who are still in hotels. A man from the tower and his elderly mother, who suffers from disabilities, are among them, according to Ms Dent Coad. She said: "This woman has been sitting in a hotel for nine months, she wants a flat, she is disabled and wants disabled access. "What the hell are RBKC doing spending a fortune on hotels when there are supposedly 300 flats they bought out there?"
Grenfell memorial service Thu, December 14, 2017 Prince William, Kate and Harry pay respects to Grenfell victims at memorial service. Play slideshow PA 1 of 19 A banner at Grenfell Tower National Memorial Service at St Paul's Cathedral in London