John Hoban, who missed key defects, accuses council over cuts to building control service
The building inspector who missed key defects in the disastrous refurbishment of Grenfell Tower has told the public inquiry into the fire he was “truly heartbroken” for the victims during a tearful speech in which he also accused his former employer the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
John Hoban, a senior building control surveyor at the council which owned the highrise in west London, sobbed as he described his pain at the deaths of 72 people after the 2017 fire that was fuelled by the cladding system it was his job to inspect. But he expressed anger at his former employer, condemning the deep austerity cuts he said led to 10 building inspectors with 230 years of experience between them being replaced with a single new graduate about the time the refurbishment was taking place.
