indeed, sir martin moore—bick spoke for around 45 minutes this morning. many survivors, victims, victims families, listening to what he had to say, digesting what he had to say. this has been a community response. there were members of the community there who've been helping help those affected by grenfell tower to get over it, to work out how they get over it, to work out how they get over such trauma. with me is a volunteer, elena, a trained bereavement counsellor. what was it like in there? very emotional, there we re like in there? very emotional, there were many, many sui’vivoi’s like in there? very emotional, there were many, many survivors and families and their representatives there today. it was very, emotional this morning. for many it was an anxious morning. they were wondering what sir martin moore—bick would say as he outlined the main points of the inquiry. they came seeking reassurance. they were saying it was really important for them to know the reasons for the fire were properly investigated. more importantly, that the community who are

sir martin moore—bick there at the start of proceedings this morning.more about where everything goes from here sarah? as you said that the interim report, first conclusions are expected in easter, by easter, but this is a huge process as sir martin moore—bick made very clear. there are thousands of documents to go through, hundreds of people who will give evidence as this is a long and lengthy process and his statement is being digestive by the many hundreds orup to 150 being digestive by the many hundreds or up to 150 people who wear in the room when he was announcing the enquiry, many residents and survivors. i have one of them here, a university professor who also works with many young people who we re works with many young people who were involved with the fire, who we re were involved with the fire, who were involved with the fire, who were in the fire. how are they giving, now, three months on? very sadly, because the hopes that they had of surviving the high iliac fire and living a life have been shattered. one another accommodation was supposed

sir martin moore—bick there at the start of the inquiry. much for being with us. some may seem comparisons in this inquiry and the hillsborough investigation, and the whole level of anger and the distrust in the authorities and the establishment? of course. what are your thoughts on this inquiry into grenfell tower and if it can answer the key questions that the survivors and the residents want answered? it can answer the questions, it is whether it does. the initial approach of the chair, it has been a mixture. some of the questions he is asking are pertinent questions he is asking are pertinent questions but he's ruled out large areas which has angered the local community and the bereaved and the survivors, for example, recent figures show that 2% of social housing tower blocks have sprinkler systems and more than 70% of them only have one escape route. is it a coincidence? 0r only have one escape route. is it a coincidence? or is it to do with austerity? is it to do with legal aid cuts, that residents could not get complaints about safet

that was sir martin moore—bick at the start of proceedings today.atching the launch of the inquiry with residents at a church in notting hill in west london. thank you very much forjoining us. you and i spoke in the immediate aftermath of the fire, when things we re aftermath of the fire, when things were still very raw. is there any sense at all today, do you think, that today could be the start, just a very beginnings of trying to understand and to rebuild?|j a very beginnings of trying to understand and to rebuild? i think people do accept that this is the beginning ofan people do accept that this is the beginning of an explanation, and we heard what thejudge beginning of an explanation, and we heard what the judge said today. he has promised to get to the truth than to be thorough in talking to local people and involving local people, and we now need to hold him to it. when you say hold him to it, what in practical terms does that mean? it is a long process ahead, isn't it? precisely. local people wa nt a nswe rs isn't it? precisely. local peopl

the man leading the inquiry, sir martin moore—bick, said he acknowledges "the great sense of anger andyal" felt by survivors, and that the inquiry can and will provide answers about how the disaster could have happened in 21st century london. he added that the inquiry would not shrink from making recommendations that could lead to civil or criminal prosecutions. frankie mccamley reports. it was a catastrophic tragedy that killed at least 80 people. three months on from the fire at grenfell tower, those affected are still looking for answers. launching the public inquiry into the disaster today, the retired judge sir martin moore—bick, beginning with a minute's silence. he addressed how many have been feeling. thank you very much. followed by a strong reassurance he is working with those affected. i'm well aware that the past few months have turned the world of those who live in north kensington upside down and that former residents of the tower and other local people feel a great sense of anger and betrayal. that is entirely natural and understandable. but if the inquiry is to get to t

do you think sir martin moore—bick is going down the right lines?legal representatives and core participants such as myself and i am concerned he did not do so. i concerned he did not do so. i concerned he did not do so. i concerned he is pre—empting the behaviour of legal representatives by saying he will force them in certain areas to only have one person who will be representing the inquiry panel. if such behaviour we re inquiry panel. if such behaviour were the same people asking this questions over and over happened thenl questions over and over happened then i could see a need for that but why pre—empt it? then i could see a need for that but why pre-empt it? is it not the case he was outlining the broad terms and setting out a timetable as far as heated and letting you at least what he's going to be looking at? phase one being how the fire started and spread quickly, and moving on to phase two which is the design and construction. these are surely the answers questions we want the a nswers to. answers questions we want the answers to. yes, no

inside, sir martin moore—bick began with a minute's silence.assurance for those affected. i'm well aware that the past few months have turned the world of those who live in north kensington upside down, and that former residents of the tower and other local people feel a great sense of anger and betrayal. that is entirely natural and understandable, but if the inquiry is to get to the truth of what happened, it must seek out all the relevant evidence and examine it calmly and rationally. the inquiry process is not adversarial. my task is not to decide which of two or more competing parties has the better case, nor is it to punish anyone or to award anyone compensation. it is simply to get at the truth with the help of all those who have relevant evidence to give. the retired judge explained the inquiry will be carried out in two stages, examining issues including the cause and spread of the fire, the design construction and refurbishment of grenfell tower, how far regulations go in relation to high—rise flats, whether those were followed in the

sir martin moore—bick.id get today. a3 minutes and 83 seconds, and that situation, millions and millions of people watching, at least, at least, give a chance to people to ask a few questions. families don't believe that they've been listened to. they don't believe they will listen to buy our pkc, they don't believe they we re buy our pkc, they don't believe they were listened to by the tmo, they don't believe they are listened to now by mr moore picks, sir maalbeek. he really needs to take that on board, because today was not an example of him listening, it was simply him playing the rule book as to how he himself wants to conduct the inquiry. earlier, i spoke to the conservative mp david amis, who chairs parliament's conservative mp david amis, who chairs pa rliament‘s all—party conservative mp david amis, who chairs parliament's all—party group on fire safety and rescue. i liked him what he thought about sir martin's refusal to include a person from the gravell community on the inquiry panel —— i asked h

thejudge leading the inquiry, sir martin moore—bick, has set out the terms of reference, which include thomasina, who lost her home, there are still concerns. it won't look at social housing. we don't think it's going to look deep enough into the relationship between arms—length organisation, the tenant management 0rganisation, and the royal borough of kensington and chelsea. i'm not sure it will go into depth to identify which individuals are responsible for which decisions, which i think is really important, if we're going to hold them to account. the government says social housing questions will be directed to the housing minister. 105 new homes had been made available within the borough, but out of 196 households, only three have been moved into permanent accommodation. frankie mccamley, bbc news. frankie is outside notting hill methodist church. it is appropriate you are there. one of the places many people have gathered to pay respects to those who died. yes, absolutely, and this is where the public enquiry began the many people living both in grenfell tower and the surrounding a

and inside the ornate room a few miles from the fire, the chairman, sir martin moore—bick, opened thes. thank you very much. but it certainly isn't silence those who escaped from this tower want, but questions asked and answers given after so many died and so many lost everything. the inquiry cannot undo any of that, but it can and will provide answers to the pressing questions of how a disaster of this kind could occur in 21st century london, and thereby, i hope, provide a small measure of solace. i'm well aware that the past few months have turned the world of those who live in north kensington upside down and that former residents of the tower and other local people feel a great sense of anger and betrayal. that is entirely natural and understandable, but if the inquiry is to get to the truth of what happened, it must seek out all the relevant evidence and examine it calmly and rationally. as he finished, a barrister advising some of the survivors stood and tried to ask a question. the judge didn't stop, the broadcast inside, controlled by the inquiry, did. shouts of frustration fr

sir martin moore—bick‘s been embroiled in a clash of cultures with people from the tower and surrounding say the government will do a hatchetjob. yet he's promising to dig deep, name names, explain what happened, bring them solace. the questions he wants to answer fill 11 pages. they cover the direct cause of the fire, the history of the building, its management and fire safety procedures. but the key ones focus on modifications to the building, the now infamous cladding. questions — what factors motivated decisions about the refurbishment? we've seen evidence of cost—cutting. did the refurbishment breach building regulations and, if so, was it was responsible? as the tower burnt, residents were told to stay in their flats for two hours. why? was this safety advice appropriate, given the latest fire safety thinking? and when it came to the emergency services‘ response, were firefighters hampered in their strategy for dealing with the flames? but the focus is on the tower and the fire, not on wider social housing issues. often people who have suffered a tragedy will want every issue looke

the head of the investigation, retired judge sir martin moore—bick, described the blaze as a tragedyd in modern times". today he laid out exactly what the inquiry will aim to do. as well as examining the cause and spread of the fire,, the inquiry will look at whether the design, construction and refurbishment of the building complied with building regulations. it will also examine the response of the emergency services and the local authority. relatives of victims and residents of the block listened to the opening statement. our special correspondent, lucy manning, was with one of them. ahmed chellat is on a journey to the opening of the grenfell inquiry today, but he hopes eventually to justice. i would like him to find out the cause of the fire. he lost his brother—in—law, sister—in—law, two nephews and a niece in the fire. eight—year—old mehdi, just identified yesterday, they are still waiting to find the remains of 15—year—old nur huda. what do you want the inquiry in the end to be able to do for your family? well, we're not going to have them back, that's for sure, but prevent i

but, you know, one of the criticisms today is that sir martin moore—bick was not taking more questionstake any questions... he didn't take any questions. but today isn't necessarily the moment that he should be taking questions. this is the very beginning, and there are many questions to come. in many ways, we have to step back, and in orderfor this to be ways, we have to step back, and in order for this to be truly impartial we have to try to separate the law so we have to try to separate the law so that people actually get there just is. my biggest concern is that it will get so politicised that nobody feels they will get justice. my concern, though, if you look at in choir rose from the past 40 or so years, from bloody sunday to hillsborough and so many in between -- if hillsborough and so many in between —— if you look at enquiries. it took so —— if you look at enquiries. it took so long to get to the truth. why was that? as usual, the system protected it so. it was usually a retired judge in charge, terms of reference that were too narrow, it was usually an inquiry that took far t

chaired by sir martin moore—bick, who had a rocky initial reception from some of the families affectedut exactly what caused the fire three months ago. but it is an altogether bigger moment too — a detailed case study of how well our country works, particularly for those without the connections or money to fix things in their favour. under examination will be building and fire safety regulations, the response of the fire brigade, and the responsiveness of the council to its tenants' concerns, among other things. and careful to dispel any suspicion of cover—up, it'll all be streamed live. we'll look at the hopes and fears people hold of the inquiry shortly, but we know many people think austerity was, at root, to blame. our policy editor chris cook looks now at what we already know, including the startling fact that using combustible cladding on the building, barely saved any money at all. life in west london continues around the dark shell of grenfell tower. it's become a monument not just to its own victims, but to social injustice, to a widening wealth gap, and to the consequences of

survivors accusing the enquiries —— inquiry chairman, sirmartin the enquiries —— inquiry chairman, sir martin moorethat gps must refer almost 2 million people for nhs cooking and exercise classes. the daily mail says that well—off parts of the country are facing the construction of tens of thousands of new homes under a government plan to tackle the housing crisis. so, let's delve into some of those stories in a bit more detail. kate, kick us off with the ft. this is about a little hint that has come today that the flat—lining interest rates that we have seen for so long may gently start to creep. it looks like a big tent. chris giles in the ft said the bank of england has issued its strongest guidance in a decade that it may raise interest rates. this is considered to be both a hawkish move, but also a surprise move. a lot of people will be quickly scrambling to reassess what they think is going to happen after this occui’s. think is going to happen after this occurs. you have debate on both sides. obviously, raising these interest rates to some would be a good depth forward to get rid of the arti

martin moore—bick. our policy editor, chris cook was at the hearing. today for the inquiry? so, one of the things he talked about is balancing the needs, firstly to keep the community engaged and to feel that they trust him and accept his recommendations. 0n the other hand he must remain judge like, impartial and detached. he did the former by talking about how much resources and time would be dedicated to the community and the latter with his tone, being judged like. at the end, he turned to leave, walked out and as he did so, the activist lawyer, michael lancefield, started holding forth and asking him questions and the judge ignored him and walked out. that led to a bit of unhappiness. it felt a bit cold—blooded, really. how is this being seen from whitehall? there is a sense in which central government hate this. they've already sent letters to dc lg, the community department, the business department, looking into fire safety and deregulation. the key thing is that ministers are not allowed to see advice given to ministers in previous governments.

its head, sir martin moore—bick, says his investigation will answer ‘pressing questions‘ about the disastern who's spent 11 years in prison, despite only being sentenced to ten months, is set to be released. james ward had been told he wouldn't be released until a parole board decided he wasn't a danger to the public. the bank of england has said that higher inflation and a pick up in growth could lead to a rise in interest rates in ‘the coming months‘. the bank‘s voted to keep rates on hold at a quarter of one per cent for now. borisjohnson has met the us secretary of state in london for discussions about libya, iran and north korea. rex tillerson also promised american help for the uk after brexit. president trump has landed in florida to see the damage caused by hurricane irma. millions are still without power, and more than 20 people in the us lost their lives. ina in a moment, it will be time for sportsday, but first, a quick look at what else is coming up this evening on bbc news. at 7pm: as donald trump arrives in florida to meet people affected by hurricane irma, the programme exami

buildings fire regulations whether they were observed in this case or not it's clear that some martin moore big is going to have quite a challenge to win over the trust of local residents in this part of london many of them have argued in recent weeks that he was not the right man for the job but he came from too much of an establishment background there's been resentment and anger over what they perceive as the narrow terms of the inquiry they wanted a broader inquiry that would look at wealth inequality social housing in this part of london and the very very slow pace with which residents caught up in the fire have been really housed has been another grievance only a handful of families have found permanent alternative accommodation so far. india's prime minister narendra modi has met with to punch out of talks in the city of amount about launched india's first bullet train which will run between the western city of mumbai is one of the projects that japan and india are working on together to deepen economic ties zimbabwe is bringing in a new system of votes of registration ahead of next

the man leading the inquiry, sir martin moore—bick, said he acknowledges ‘the great sense of anger andsaster could have happened in 21st century london. i'm well aware that the past few months have turned the world of those who live in north kensington upside down, and that former residents of the tower and other local people feel a great sense of anger and betrayal. that is entirely natural and understandable. but if the enquiry is to get to the truth of what happened, it must seek out all the relevant evidence and examine it calmly and rationally. the solicitors acting for the enquiry will approach the task in that way, as i hope will be legal representatives of the various core participants. in that way, they will help us all discover where the truth really lies. i should also remind eve ryo ne really lies. i should also remind everyone that section two of the enquiries act 2005 prohibits me from ruling on or determining anyone's civil or criminal liability. however, the same section also expressly provides that i am not to be inhibited by the likelihood of liability being inferred

housing this has outraged many people on line now the man put in charge as barnaby was saying is martin moore brick he's in charge of the inquiry which is a press briefing that appointed grenfell tower survivor as the assessor so he did not appoint that person he said quote that it would risk undermining my impartiality this user wrote that saying the grenfell tower inquiry opening is not what many residents wanted grey haired white man in suit and tie is far removed from their lives that of course referring to mr more brick others though are trying to remain hopeful like this woman who said that she's praying for that the residents of grenfell get the justice that they deserve if you're following this story online let us know what you think you can tweet us with the hash tag a.j. news that and a little opinion piece here which covers both the grenfell and malaysia stories that summer at the odd isn't it that such disasters will keep happening unless attitudes towards urban housing are actually changed among other things she says more could also be done to compel private developers to ensure

. " authorities in the french island territory of saint martin say it has been reduced to rubble and its airport is virtually destroyed. andy mooreisland of barbuda, home to 1600 people, was one of the first places to be hit by hurricane irma with full brunt. it is estimated 95% of homes have been damaged. communications were destroyed, cutting it off from the outside world. the prime minister said the island was barely habitable. what i saw was heart—wrenching, absolutely devastating. in fact, saw was heart—wrenching, absolutely devastating. infact, i saw was heart—wrenching, absolutely devastating. in fact, i believe the extent of the destruction is unprecedented. a two-year-old toddler was killed. there were many lucky escapes. we had containers, 40 foot containers, flying left and right, and tons of debris. the story you are getting from most of the residents here is the eye of the storm camejust residents here is the eye of the storm came just in residents here is the eye of the storm camejust in time. people residents here is the eye of the storm came just in time. people were literally tying themselves to their roofs with

moore haven, florida. >> reporter: a reservoir flooding during hurricane harvey. homes submerged, people scrambling to get out. that's the nightmare scenario in florida for marianne martin. >> it's a man-made hill. >> reporter: she lives near the herbert hoover dike holding back water from lake okeechobee. 40,000 at risk if that dike fails, as happened in new orleans during katrina. this is not a case of you just crossing your fingers then. >> no, it's not. and i hope i don't have to regret saying that. >> reporter: a warning the florida governor is issuing tonight. >> the biggest risk on the dike at okeechobee is too much rain. that's why they're lowering levels. >> reporter: lake okeechobee so large it's visible from outer space, more than 700 square miles. now the race to lower water levels, critical because with just one foot of rain from irma, the lake will rise more than three feet. the dike 90 years in the making is in desperate need of critical repairs. a $1.5 billion fix is now under way. the army corps of engineers recognizes the potential. their own report says depending on the potential location of a breach, the life loss, economic and adverse environmental

martin, good to see you, thank you. an inquest into the death of the moors murderer ian brady has been reopened.ady and myra hindley‘s crimes are infamous and he is still attracting media attention even after his death. at the inquest today, coroner christopher sumner said brady died from natural causes. he had heart failure linked to chronic lung disease. he had been a heavy smoker for much of his life. he died in may aged 79 at ashworth psychiatric hospital where he had been for more than 30 years and he had been on intermittent hunger strike, as he called it, refusing food on and off and had been force—fed through nasal feeding tubes during his time there. the inquest heard today that he was not emaciated and had been accepting snacks and meals at times from various carers. brady died without revealing where he buried 12—year—old keith bennett, a secret he seems to have taken with him to the grave. for the families of other victims, this is an ordeal which will never be over. it's hard to put words to it, really, how i felt when he did die. we are still affected by everything until we die. it

martin and the neighbouring territory of st ba rts. the eye of the hurricane has passed over the british virgin islands. puerto rico awaits, as does florida. andy moore. the island of barbuda, home to 1600 people, was one of the first places to be hit by irma, and it bore the full runt. to be hit by irma, and it bore the full ru nt. it to be hit by irma, and it bore the full runt. it is estimated 95% of homes have been damaged. the communications tower was destroyed, cutting the island the outside world. the prime minister said the island was barely habitable. what i saw was heart—wrenching. absolutely devastating. in fact, saw was heart—wrenching. absolutely devastating. infact, i saw was heart—wrenching. absolutely devastating. in fact, i believe that ona devastating. in fact, i believe that on a per capita basis, the extent of the destruction in barbuda is unprecedented. a two-year-old toddler was killed. there were many lucky escapes. we had cars flying over our head, we had containers, 40 foot containers, flying left and right. the story that you are getting from most of the residents year is that the ril to storm came just in time. —— the eye o

known quotation by martin nemo ller concludes hadich , they came for me, there was no one left to speak of. robert bolt illustrated the same point in his brilliant play about sir thomas moore, a man for all seasons. in bolt's version, moore defends the rule of law in argument with his son-in-law. roper is angry that moore would give the benefit of the rule of law even to the devil. analogizing laws to trees, roper insists he that he would cut down every tree if necessary in order to destroy the devil. moore replies, oh. and when the last law was down and the devil turned round on you, where would you hide, roper? the laws all being flat. the point is if we permit the rule of law to erode when at first it does not directly harm our personal interests, the erosion may eventually consume us as well. the rule of law is not self-executing. and if it collapses, if people lose faith in the rule of law, then everyone will suffer. so what was lincoln's solution? the declaration of independence and the constitution were his guide stars. just as the patriots of 1776 and the founders of 1787 revered the constitution and the rule of law, so too should future generations. let reverence

martin say it has been reduced to rubble and its airport is virtually destroyed, while the dutch prime minister says the death toll on the dutch section of the island is still unknown. the bbc‘s andy moore. an entire island raised to the ground, barbuda, home to 16,000 people, both at full force of hurricane irma. the communication tower was destroyed, cutting it off from the outside world. the prime minister said the island is barely habitable. what i saw was heart—rending, absolutely devastating. in fact, heart—rending, absolutely devastating. infact, i heart—rending, absolutely devastating. in fact, i believe on a per capita basis, the extent of the destruction in barbuda is unprecedented. a two-year-old toddler was killed, and there were many lucky escapes. we had cars flying over our head, we had 40 foot containers flying left and right. and the story that you are getting from most of the residents here is that the eye of the storm came just in time. people were literally tying themselves to their homes with ropes to keep them down. on the more affluent french territory of saint martin, a similar picture of devastation. at least nine people are dead and dozens injured. 0n the dutch

it will begin with a statement from its chairman — the retired judge, sir martin moore—bick.coming months he'll hear evidence about the immediate causes of the blaze injune, the construction and refurbishment of the 2a—storey block and wider issues of fire safety in high—rise buildings. families will be able to watch proceedings by video link from a church nearby. frankie mccamley reports. it was a catastrophic tragedy that killed at least 80 people. three months on from the fire at grenfell tower, many questions remain unanswered. today, the public inquiry is being launched. it aims to get to the bottom what happened, and find out what can be done to stop something like this happening again. thejudge leading the inquiry, sir martin moore—bick, has set out the terms of reference, which include: the cause and spread of the fire, the design of the refurbishment of g re nfell tower, the design of the refurbishment of grenfell tower, how far regulations go in relation to high—rise flats, whether those were for —— followed in the case of grenfell tower, the action of the relevant

martin. whatever. >> chris, thank you very much, indeed. chris moore there in st. martin. >> today on capitol hill, the senate commerce committee looks at self-driving trucks. the technology behind them. and the government's role in regulating them. live coverage begins at 10:00 a.m. eastern. then a hearing on taxpayer disputes and how the irs can stream line the process. we'll take you to that hearing live at 2:00 eastern. and then at 4:30, a conversation on the aftermath of hurricane irma. ambassadors from the netherlands, antigua, and barbuda are scheduled to speak. >>> now, white house legislative affairs director mark short talks about the president's -- deferred action for childhood arrivals or daca. yesterday's christian science monitor breakfast is about an hour. >> my friend good morning, i'm dave cook. thanks for coming. our guest today is mark short. assistant to the president and assistant to the office of legislative affairs. this is his first visit