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Jeremy Corbyn has attacked Kensington and Chelsea Council over its response to the Grenfell Tower disaster, saying it appeared to “lack the resources” to deal with the fire despite being the wealthiest local authority in the country.
The fire in the tower block, which including council and privately owned flats, killed at least 58 people.
The borough and the Government, Theresa May in particular, have faced criticism over the response.
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fireShow all 51 1 /51In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police have released images from inside the tower where at least 58 people have died
Metropolitan Police
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A still from a video shared by polices what appears to be a stationary bicycle sitting among the ashes
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A still from a video shared by police shows the remnants of a burnt-out bathroom
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Picture showing the lifts on an unknown floor
Metropolitan Police
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emergency crews outside the front entrance to the tower
Metropolitan Police
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Fire crews inspecting flats in the burnt out tower
London Metropolitan Police
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Grenfell Tower is seen in the distance
PA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A drone flies near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire 'Theresa May Stay Away' message written on the messages of support at Latymer Community Church for those affected by the fire
Ray Tang/REX
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire An aerial view of the area surrounding Grenfall tower
Getty
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Donated shoes sit in the Westway Sports Centre near to the site of the Grenfell Tower fire
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Messages of support for those affected by the massive fire in Grenfell Tower are displayed on a well near the tower in London
AP
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A local resident stands on her balcony by the gutted Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Messages of condolence are left at a relief centre close to the scene of the fire that broke out at Grenfell Tower,
EPA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A police officer stands by a security cordon outside Latimer Road station
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Firemen examine the scorched facade of the Grenfell Tower in London on a huge ladder
AP
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A search dog is led through the rubble of the Grenfell Tower in London as firefighting continue to damp-down the deadly fire
AP
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn comforts a local resident (name not given) at St Clement's Church in west London where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower
David Mirzoeff/PA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn hugs councillor Mushtaq Lasharie as he arrives at St Clement's Church in Latimer Road, where volunteers have provided shelter and support for people affected by the fire at Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn meeting staff and volunteers at St Clementís Church in Latimer Road
David Mirzoeff/PA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Firefighters with a dog walk around the base of the Grenfell Tower
REUTERS/Peter Nicholls
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emotions run high as people attend a candle lit vigil outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Debris hangs from the blackened exterior of Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman speaks to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building
Yui Mok/PA Wire
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman holds a missing person posters near the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Sadiq Khan speaking with a resident
James Gourley/REX
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Ken Livingstone walks near the scene of the Grenfell Tower fire
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is confronted by Kai Ramos, 7, near Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building
Yui Mok/PA Wire
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Mayor of London Sadiq Khan speaks to a woman outside Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower
Yui Mok/PA Wire
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers distribute aid near Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower
EPA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower
EPA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Family and friends of missing Jessica Urbano, 12, wearing photographs of Jessica pinned to their t-shirts gather near Grenfell Tower
EPA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People gather to observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People light candles as they observe a vigil outside St Clement's Church following the blaze at Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People attend a vigil at Notting Hill Methodist Church near Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A man distributes food from the back of a van near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Paul Hackett
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A firefighter is cheered near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Paul Hackett
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A T-shirt with a written message from the London Fire Brigade hangs from a fence near The Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A young girl on her way to lay flowers near Grenfell Tower
Getty Images
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire The remains of residential tower block Grenfell Tower are seen from Dixon House a nearby tower block
Getty
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers prepare supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block which was destroyed in a fire
REUTERS/Neil Hall
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Volunteers move a car to make space for a lorry picking up supplies for people affected by the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire People distribute boxes of food near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower bloc
REUTERS/Paul Hackett
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A woman touches a missing poster for 12-year-old Jessica Urbano on a tribute wall after laying flowers on the side of Latymer Community Church next to the fire-gutted Grenfell Tower
AP
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire A man looks at messages written on a wall near the scene of the fire which destroyed the Grenfell Tower block
REUTERS/Paul Hackett
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Candles and messages of condolence near where the fire broke out at Grenfell Tower
EPA
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police carry a stretcher towards Grenfell Tower
Rick Findler/PA Wire
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Emergency services at Grenfell Tower
Rick Findler/PA Wire
In Pictures: Grenfell Tower after the fire Police carry out a body from Grenfell Tower in west London after a fire engulfed the 24-storey building
Rick Findler/PA Wire
The Labour leader told ITV’s Peston on Sunday programme that local people and the emergency services had been “incredible".
But he added: “What was less effective was the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, because they seemed to lack the resources to deal with a crisis of this magnitude in their borough and yet they are the country's wealthiest borough.”
Mr Corbyn defended his call for empty flats bought as an investment to be requisitioned to give people made homeless by the fire a place to stay.
“Every day at Heathrow, planes get delayed, hundreds of people get stranded ... and hotels are found for them immediately, they are sorted out,” he said.
“Four hundred or so people [made homeless by the Grenfell fire] still, most of them, have not got somewhere decent or safe and secure to stay in.
“Somehow it seems to be beyond the wit of the public services to deal with a crisis facing a relatively small number of people in a country of 65 million.”
The answer, Mr Corbyn suggested, was simple: “There are a large number of deliberately kept empty, vacant flats and properties all over London. It’s called land banking,” he said.
“People with a lot of money buy a house, buy a flat, and keep it empty.”
Such properties should be used to help people in their time of need, he said, suggesting there were different ways of enabling this to happen.
“Occupy it, compulsory purchase it, requisition it. There’s a lot of things you can do,” Mr Corbyn said.
“Cannot we as a society just think, all of us ... it’s all very well putting our arms around people during the crisis, but homelessness is rising and the housing crisis is getting worse.
“My point was quite a simple one. In an emergency we have to bring all assets to the table in order to deal with that crisis and that is what I think we should be doing in this case.”
At one point in the interview, he appeared to defend Ms May against criticisms that she had failed to show sympathy towards those affected by the crisis.
"I think everybody cares to an extent, some to a deeper extent and some show empathy in a different way to others," the Labour leader said.
"But the real issue is not about what we as individuals feel, Theresa May, me, anybody else, it's what those people are going through."
Kensington and Chelsea council did not respond to a request for comment, but its leader later defended the authority's response to the disaster , saying it had been "effective".
The Press Association contributed to this report
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