Debarment investigations into seven organisations criticised by the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, which could lead to a ban on winning public contracts, have been paused to prevent any impact on criminal investigations.
On Thursday (10 July), the Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service informed the Cabinet Office that continuing the debarment investigations could unintentionally prejudice the criminal investigation and any future criminal proceedings.
“To ensure the Metropolitan Police’s criminal investigation and any future proceedings remain the priority, the Cabinet Office has paused its separate, non-criminal debarment investigations,” the Cabinet Office said in a statement.
“This decision has been made to safeguard the integrity of the Metropolitan Police’s criminal investigation.”
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden, told Parliament of the need to maintain the “integrity of criminal proceedings in the pursuit of justice for the Grenfell community”.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said she is writing to the survivors and residents in the immediate community to share the decision and has reaffirmed the government’s “commitment to holding organisations to account”.
Earlier this year, Rayner said leading manufacturers and contractors in the refurbishment of Grenfell Tower exhibited “disgraceful mercenary behaviour” and will be investigated for a complete debarment.
Main contractor Rydon Maintenance – which led the refurbishment job on Grenfell Tower – and insulation provider Kingspan are among the firms, Rayner said in a speech to the House of Commons in February.
Saint Gobain, the former parent company of Celotex, another insulation provider involved in the refurbishment job, is also under investigation. Saint Gobain sold off Celotex in 2023.
It has also included cladding manufacturer Arconic, architect firm Studio E, cladding subcontractor Harley Facades and fire safety consultancy Exova (UK).
The firms all came in for substantial criticism in the Grenfell phase two report, which was published in September.
Investigations into the seven organisations, under new powers of the Procurement Act 2023, were announced immediately after the act came into force in February.
The act allows the government to investigate suppliers and, if certain grounds are met, add them to a published debarment list.
Public sector organisations covered by the act now must have regard to the list when carrying out new procurements that are covered by the act’s remit.
When a supplier is added to the debarment list on a mandatory ground, they must be excluded from all procurement activity within scope of the act, except in very limited circumstances.
If an organisation is convicted of a criminal offence that is a mandatory exclusion ground under the act, it can now potentially enable the government to take stronger action.
But in March, one lawyer told Construction News it was “unclear” how the government can ban firms without reforming the act. And another said that such a reform would create a “plethora of problems”.
The government “will only be able to go back to February 2020” when seeking debarments, said Mark London, senior partner in the construction, engineering and procurement team at law firm Devonshires.
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Nicola Harley