Lord Pickles sorry he ‘misspoke’ in getting Grenfell death toll wrong

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Lord Eric Pickles, giving evidence last week, said that 96 people died in the June 2017 blaze when the correct number of victims was 72. I apologise to the family and friends of the 72 people who died at Grenfell for this unintended mistake, which was unscripted Lord Pickles Lord Pickles, who was secretary of state at the Department for Communities and Local Government between 2010 and 2015, made reference to the victims as the “nameless 96 people” when he appeared before the inquiry into the west London tower block blaze on Thursday. Following his remarks last week, survivors’ group Grenfell United criticised him for what it branded his “utter disregard” for victims and called for his removal from Government and the House of Lords. “Otherwise, Government continues to show the contempt it’s always had for people’s safety in this country.” The former MP for Brentwood and Ongar also appeared to become frustrated with how much of his time the inquiry was taking up last week, as he gave a second day of evidence.