189 Brian Martin

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Podcast

BBC

News

4.8 • 627 Ratings

🗓️ 25 March 2022

⏱️ 39 minutes

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Summary

This week, senior civil servant Brian Martin continued giving evidence to the Inquiry. As the only person to testify with experience working for both the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Building Research Establishment, the Inquiry learnt about the intricacies and inadequacies of his role overseeing building regulations guidance. He conceded that he had underestimated the risks posed by cladding used on high-rise buildings like Grenfell Tower, and that he had lulled his peers into a false sense of security over the dangers. Presenter: Kate Lamble Producers: Sharon Hemans, Kristiina Cooper and Nathan Gower Researcher: Marcia Veiga Studio Mix: Gareth Jones Editor: Hugh Levinson

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts.
0:05.1	Hello and welcome to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry podcast with me, Kate Lamble.
0:09.8	This week, the government official overseeing the building regulation guidance related to fire safety,
0:15.0	said he underestimated the risks posed by the cladding used on Grenfell Tower.
0:19.5	I think if I'd fully understood it, I may have put more time into this issue.
0:25.5	I completely underestimated the hazard.
0:28.2	And he accepted he'd lulled the government's chief fire and rescue advisor into a false
0:32.5	sense of security about the risk of high-rise cladding fires happening in the UK.
0:37.9	Let's get started with the evidence then.
0:39.9	This week, there was only one witness, the civil servant, Brian Martin.
0:44.1	We've heard his name repeatedly during this part of the inquiry.
0:47.9	Brian Martin?
0:48.8	Brian Martin.
0:49.6	Whose responsibility was that?
0:51.2	That would be Brian Martin's responsibility.
0:53.7	Well, I discussed it with Anthony Byrd and Brian Martin.
0:56.7	I think I had that conversation with Brian Martin at one point.
1:00.8	Brian Martin is important because for the nine years before the Grenfell Tower fire,
1:05.4	he worked as a principal construction professional
1:07.6	in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
1:12.0	And he had a specific responsibility for building regulation guidance related to fire safety. Before we get into the
1:17.9	details of what that guidance said, I want to start by looking at the attitude, Brian Martin and those
	...

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