Sadiq Khan DEMANDS Theresa May let commissioners take over ‘shambolic’ Kensington council

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Mr Khan called on Mrs May to “immediately” send in commissioners “of good standing” to take over the council, which has “lost the trust” of local residents.

Mr Khan wrote: “It is self evident that the leadership of the council has lost the trust of local residents.

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Sadiq Khan has called on the Prime Minister to let commissioners take over Kensington council

“Without this trust, the council cannot effectively serve them or meet its responsibilities.

“It is also clear that a change in leadership from amongst the existing councillors will not address this situation – in fact it may aggravate it further, as it fails to address the fundamental breakdown in trust that has taken place.”

He added the commissioners should be “untainted” to encourage confidence among residents.

It is evident the leadership of the council has lost the trust of local residents

Sadiq Khan

It comes as the council was rocked by a series of crises.

Council leader Nicholas Paget-Brown and deputy leader Rock Feilding Mellen yesterday resigned amid widespread public anger.

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Mr Khan branded the council’s actions ‘shambolic’

Mr Paget-Brown said he has to “accept [his] share of responsibility.”

He added: “Grenfell Tower has possibly been the worst day London has seen since the end of the Second World War.

“Nobody will ever forget what they saw that day and the horror that ensued for people trapped inside.

“Many questions about what caused the fire and and why it spread so quickly will need to be answered by the public inquiry.”

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Chaos erupted at Thursday night’s abandoned Kensington council meeting

And a meeting on Thursday night collapsed after councillors attempted to exclude journalists and members of the public.

At least 80 people have died or are missing, presumed dead, following the fire.

Flammable cladding is believed to have contributed to the rapid spread of the fire up the 24-storey block in West London.