Scotland Yard to open criminal inquiry into Grenfell Tower fire

UK police are set to open a criminal inquiry into the massive fire which led to the deaths of at least 30 people in the Grenfell Tower flats this week.

Emergency services have been trawling through the building in north London for the third day in an attempt to locate more bodies with hope diminishing of finding any more survivors.

The death toll is expected to rise in the coming days, with the London Fire Brigade saying it may take weeks to conduct a full search of the tower block.

In addition to the Scotland Yard investigation, Theresa May also vowed to initiate a public inquiry into the causes of the blaze, which erupted late on Tuesday night and raged for a full 24 hours.

While six of the victims have been provisionally identified by security services, London Metropolitan police chief Stuart Cundy said that there was "a risk that sadly we may not be able to identify everybody".

Emergency services have been trawling through the building in north London for the third day

"We as the police, we investigate criminal offences - I am not sitting here and saying there are criminal offences that have been committed, that's why you do an investigation, to establish it."

Anger is growing from members of the local and national community as to why the fire spread so quickly, with many calling into question whether fire and safety regulations were adhered to in the construction and recent refurbishment of the tower.

The £10m refurbishment which was completed in 2016 is likely to come under particular scrutiny, with claims that the cladding used on the outside of the building was made from a cheaper flammable material.

While PM May called for the public inquiry, she was also criticised for her visit to the fire scene on Thursday, which did not include speaking to any of the survivors of the tragic incident.

Labour MP Harriet Harman and former Tory minister Michael Portillo were among those who expressed their criticism of the PM.

Portillo said: “The Prime Minister would have been shouted at by the residents, but she should have been willing to take that. You have to be prepared to receive people’s emotions and not be so frightened about people.”