Grenfell Tower cladding company says it won’t attend victims’ testimony

Survivors and bereaved say they are ‘appalled’ by absence of firm at event intended to provide sense of justice

The multibillion dollar company that made Grenfell Tower’s combustible cladding will not attend an event at which survivors and the bereaved will testify about their suffering directly to companies that many hold responsible for the disaster.

Arconic made the plastic-filled panels that burned like petrol on 14 June 2017, when 72 people lost their lives. The firm has sparked anger among the Grenfell community by rejecting an invitation to what is expected to be a highly charged but potentially cathartic face-to-face event later this month, when about 36 people will “speak about the impact [the disaster] has had on them and those they care about”.