Downing Street lobby briefing: Theresa May hits back over Stormzy Grenfell attack
2 min read
Downing Street today hit back at grime artist Stormzy after he attacked Theresa May over the Government's handling of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
Asked whether the Prime Minister was committed to the victims of the blaze, her spokesman said: "She is absolutely committed. She has met with survivors and families of victims on a number of occasions."
The spokesman added: "The PM has been very clear that Grenfell was an unimaginable tragedy that should never have happened and should never be allowed to happen again. She is determined that the public inquiry will discover not just what went wrong but why the voices of the people of Grenfell had been ignored over so many years...
"More than £58m has been committed. That’s a breakdown of £28m announced at the Budget for ongoing mental and emotional support, community spaces for those affected and investment for the Lancashire West estate. Also nearly £15m has gone towards rehousing, £6m has gone to help for survivors through the discretionary fund, a further £7.7m for the Bellwin scheme, which is to compensate for the exceptional cost of major incidents and £2.2m of funding for local community projects. We’re also supporting and monitoring the work of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Cheslea to ensure victims receive the assistance they need in the months and the years to come."
Asked if the PM saw the Brit awards ceremony and the Stormzy attack last night, the spokesman said: "I don’t think she did no, she was working in Number 10 last night."
BREXIT MEETING
On whether the Prime Minister was looking forward to the Cabinet meeting at Chequers on Brexit this afternoon, the spokesman said: "This is part of the process and the PM and Cabinet colleagues are all looking forward to having a good constructive discussion at Chequers this afternoon."
On apparent disquiet in Cabinet ranks about plans for the Brexit implementation period revealed yesterday, the spokesman said: "The Government position on the implementation period has been set out for a while now and agreed."
