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The families of the victims of the fire that claimed 72 lives in Grenfell Tower have been informed that the building will be demolished.

Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, reportedly met with relatives and survivors on Wednesday evening, where she “announced the decision that the tower will have to be carefully deconstructed,” according to a spokesperson for Grenfell Next of Kin.

Grenfell Tower, a 24-story residential block in North Kensington, London, has been derelict since a devastating fire on June 14, 2017.

The tower, completed in 1974 as part of the first phase of the Lancaster West Estate, was nearly destroyed in the tragic blaze.

There have been concerns over how many families were consulted before this new decision was made.

Many affected families had opposed the demolition, arguing that criminal prosecutions should be completed first, regarding the failures that led to the fire.

It has now been nearly a decade, and families are still waiting for justice, a situation described as “unbearable” by some.

“We’ve said this to every secretary of state for housing since the very beginning: consult the bereaved and survivors meaningfully before reaching a decision on the tower,” Grenfell United, which represents some of the survivors and bereaved families of the disaster, said on Wednesday.

“Angela Rayner could not give a reason for her decision to demolish the tower.”

A spokesperson for Angela Rayner stated, “The Deputy Prime Minister’s priority is to meet with and write to the bereaved, survivors, and the immediate community to inform them of her decision regarding the future of Grenfell Tower.”

“This is a deeply personal matter for all those affected, and the deputy prime minister is committed to keeping their voice at the heart of this.”

The final report from the Grenfell Tower inquiry, published in September, concluded that the disaster resulted from “decades of failure” by both the government and the construction industry to address the risks of flammable materials in high-rise buildings.

The West London tower block was covered in combustible materials due to the “systematic dishonesty” of companies that manufactured and sold the cladding and insulation, according to the inquiry chair, Sir Martin Moore-Bick.

The inquiry found that the deaths were entirely avoidable, with those who lived in the tower being “badly failed” by authorities, often due to incompetence but, in some cases, due to dishonesty and greed, Moore-Bick said.

In May 2024, prosecutors and police announced that investigators would need until the end of 2025 to complete their inquiry.

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