Apologetic Prime Minister Theresa May says Grenfell Tower residents will never get closure

Theresa May apologised for not meeting Grenfell residents on the day of the fire. Credit: Grenfell Speaks

Prime Minister Theresa May has apologised to Grenfell campaigners and said she believes residents may never get closure from the disaster.

Speaking to campaign group Grenfell Speaks, Mrs May once again said she was wrong not to meet survivors on the day of the fire.

The prime minister, who issued an apology in a newspaper article on Monday, was questioned directly on what justice would look like for her on the eve of the one-year anniversary.

Mrs May said it would be achieved by getting to the truth and "ensuring that those who are responsible are properly held to account".

The prime minister said the response following the tragedy was "not good enough", admitting that this wasn't the first time that the council had failed to "respond to their needs".

On her own regrets, she said, "I think people perhaps felt that they wanted those of us in power to know that we had understood and recognise what happened, and perhaps felt that not meeting them immediately meant that I didn't care and that was never the case."

On Monday, Mrs May laid a wreath down in an unannounced visit to a Grenfell church servicewith a handwritten note that read, "In memory of all those who lost their lives at Grenfell Tower. They will never be forgotten."

An inquiry into the fire has seen heartbreaking accounts from victims and their families as they pay tribute to lost loved ones in recent weeks.

Thursday will mark the one-year anniversary of the disaster.

A 24-hour vigil will be the first of many events taking place in memory of the victims, including a one-minute silence at midday.