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Report into fire safety at tower blocks is revealed
Felix Allen6 Oct 2009
Council chiefs have backed down after refusing to tell residents about fire safety in their tower blocks following the fatal Camberwell blaze.
Southwark was accused of wanting to cover up details of its fire safety record. Residents demanded to know if proper risk assessments had been carried out at other blocks similar to Lakanal House, where six people died in a fire on 3 July.
For three months the council refused to reveal even how many of its 299 high-rise residential blocks had no valid fire risk assessment, claiming such information would "prejudice" an official inquiry into the Lakanal tragedy.
But it was forced into a U-turn after a leaked email showed that details relating to other buildings in the borough did not form part of the investigation. The council will release the information within 20 days.
Resident Janet Yatak, 53, who lives in Perronet House in Elephant and Castle, said: "We've been asking to know if our blocks are safe for three months but it was obvious the council did not want to answer. This just goes to show we were entitled to this information all along but they wanted to cover it up."
A BBC investigation has revealed at least 10 other London boroughs have knowingly housed thousands of council tenants in tower blocks rated as being at "high risk" from fire.
Commander David Zinzan, Metropolitan Police Service, said: "Southwark Council has cooperated in full with the police since the inquiries began, but it is important to understand that this is a highly complex investigation.
"As a result, misunderstandings can sometimes occur and things change as the inquiry progresses."
Annie Shepperd, Chief Executive of Southwark Council, said: "I am confident that Southwark Council has only ever acted in the best interests of supporting the police investigation into the fire at Lakanal and has not withheld information for any other reason.
"We believe we have followed direction from the police that by disclosing information through responding to Freedom of Information, or any other, requests, we may prejudice their investigation. No one involved wants this to happen."
