Steve Parsons/PA
The leader of a firefighting union has condemned remarks made by Sir Tony Blair about the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
The ex-prime minister told reporters that tragedies like Grenfell cannot be completely avoided during in a TV interview and that people are “going to make mistakes” even in “well-intentioned systems”.
It comes just days after the chair of the Grenfell Inquiry said that the deaths of all 72 people who were killed in the fire at the building were avoidable.
In his final statement seven years after the fire, chairman Sir Martin Moore-Bick said the tower residents were “badly failed over a number of years” by those responsible for ensuring their safety.
Blair has been blasted for his “out of touch” comments by Matt Wrack, the Fire Brigades Union general secretary, who said:
“Tony Blair’s despicable comments are the remarks of a multi-millionaire who has lost touch with the reality of people’s lives. Every single person has the right to a safe, decent home. Every single one of the deaths at Grenfell Tower were unnecessary and wholly avoidable.
“The Grenfell fire was not the result of a well-intentioned people making mistakes, but of a systematic disregard for the safety of residents – and the prioritisation of private profit over human life. As Prime Minister, Tony Blair was an enthusiastic supporter of the same agenda of deregulation that led to the Grenfell disaster.
“At the heart of this agenda of deregulation is a disdain for working class people, and a view that sees their living standards, and even their lives, as expendable in pursuit of free market economics. It is no wonder that the public are losing faith in politicians when politicians like Tony Blair make it clear that they have no regard for ordinary people.”
Related: Reminder that builders who use Grenfell cladding have donated £2.5m to the Tories since 2017
