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Grenfell housing boss Laura Johnson leaves £150,000 Barnet role after survivors call appointment 'outrageous'

Grenfell Tower, where a 2017 fire killed 72 people after cost-cutting decisions led to combustible cladding being installed, with 54 individuals now referred to prosecutors over potential corporate manslaughter charges.
Grenfell Tower, where a 2017 fire killed 72 people after cost-cutting decisions led to combustible cladding being installed, with 54 individuals now referred to prosecutors over potential corporate manslaughter charges.
Laura Johnson, the housing director whose cost-cutting decisions preceded the Grenfell fire, had taken up the Barnet Group role in August before leaving following pressure from bereaved families and survivors.
Laura Johnson, the housing director whose cost-cutting decisions preceded the Grenfell fire, had taken up the Barnet Group role in August before leaving following pressure from bereaved families and survivors.

Laura Johnson, the housing director whose cost-cutting decisions at Grenfell Tower preceded the 2017 fire that killed 72 people, has left a £157,078-a-year post at Barnet Group following intense pressure from bereaved families and survivors. She had taken up the role of director of development and property at the north London council housing firm in August. Barnet Group chair Eamon McGoldrick broke the news of her exit in a letter to Kensington and Bayswater MP Joe Powell, stating that the organisation "fully recognises the depth of feeling" surrounding the tragedy.

The Grenfell inquiry concluded that Johnson had pushed for a cheaper contractor, a decision that resulted in combustible plastic-filled cladding being installed to cut costs.

Her exit follows the Metropolitan Police's referral of 54 individuals and 20 organisations — including Kensington and Chelsea Council — to the Crown Prosecution Service over potential corporate manslaughter charges.

The CPS is targeting charging decisions ahead of the tenth anniversary of the fire next June.

MoreBBC News - LondonEx-Grenfell housing chief no longer at Barnet CouncilSocialist WorkerOfficial implicated in Grenfell fire ousted by justice campaigners - Socialist WorkerBarnet PostGrenfell fire council housing boss leaves The Barnet Group - Barnet PostInside HousingRBKC director who was in place in lead-up to Grenfell Tower fire no longer employed in new role - Inside Housing
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