Recommendation P2-22: Independent panel review of building control commercial interests
From Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report, published 4 September 2024.
Recommendation
We therefore recommend that the government appoint an independent panel to consider whether it is in the public interest for building control functions to be performed by those who have a commercial interest in the process. (113.37)
In brief (written by this site)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government stated in September 2026 that this recommendation is complete and has been "fully discharged" (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Sep 2026). The department had previously reported the recommendation as completed in May 2026 (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, May 2026). In February 2026, it reported that an independent panel chaired by Dame Judith Hackitt had issued a call for evidence and was developing recommendations for publication (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Feb 2026).
Sources
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 26 Sep 2026. The record below is the sources' own words.
Government response
The government accepts this recommendation. An independent panel will be established to review the building control sector and will recommend which bodies should carry out certain functions, as well as whether all building control functions should be performed by a national authority.
How this response relates to the recommendation
Site note: This is the government's response to the Phase 2 report (CP 1248, published 26 February 2025). It prints each recommendation and then the response to it. Where the recommendation is addressed to a body outside government, the response prints that body's own acceptance (the Architects Registration Board and RIBA, HMICFRS, London Fire Brigade, the National Fire Chiefs Council, the British Standards Institution, the National Police Chiefs' Council), and the row is filed under that body.
Delivery
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government says completed (10 September 2026)
These recommendations are complete and have been fully discharged.
Site note: This is the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's progress report of September 2026 on the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations. Where the passage describes work by another body, such as the National Fire Chiefs Council, London Fire Brigade, fire and rescue services, the British Standards Institution or the Cabinet Office, it is the Ministry's account of that body's progress, and the row is filed under the Ministry.
Site note: The source gives this passage once, for recommendations 22 and 23 together. The same words are recorded on P2-22 and P2-23.
Earlier statements on delivery (2)
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (20 May 2026)
Since the Annual Report published in February 2026, we have completed a further 9 recommendations. Recommendations 22, 23, 27 and 28 are related to the construction industry, and 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 are related to response and recovery.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (25 February 2026)
In May 2025, we announced, a panel chaired by Dame Judith Hackitt which included three members from the Industry Safety Steering Group (Dr David Snowball, Elaine Bailey and Ken Rivers) and Rt Hon Nick Raynsford.
As published in June, the panel’s terms of reference and membership set out scope and approach; in July, a problem statement and call for evidence were issued. In September we reported that the panel was reviewing responses and drafting its interim report; in December, we announced the panel’s commitment to publish their report in the following months, with government planning to issue a formal response in 2026. The panel is developing recommendations for publication in the coming months.
Site note: This is the annex of the government's Phase 2 annual report (CP 1512, published 25 February 2026) as GOV.UK publishes it, one page per theme: the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's account. Where the passage describes work by another body, such as the National Fire Chiefs Council, London Fire Brigade, the British Standards Institution, the Health and Safety Executive or the Cabinet Office, it is the report's account of that body's progress, and the row is filed under the Ministry. The status is what the passage says: completed only where it says the recommendation is complete or closed.
Site note: The source gives this passage once, for recommendations 22 and 23 together. The same words are recorded on P2-22 and P2-23.
Responsible bodies
Themes and tags
Who has spoken
- UK Government
Response - Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Delivery statement