"We believe that extending this policy for a further 3 months gives survivors further opportunity to come forward, both to receive support for the exceptionally traumatic events they have experienced and to provide essential first-hand accounts of the fire," Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said, as quoted by his office.
He stressed that the welfare of survivors of the deadly fire was a priority for the UK government.
"I also hope this extension will help to dispel people’s fears about coming forward to assist the inquiry into this horrific and unprecedented incident due to their immigration status," the minister said.
On June 14, a huge fire started at the Grenfell tower high-rise block in North Kensington in London, engulfing the entire building and trapping almost 120 families inside. A set of the combustibility tests has been carried out since then, showing that cladding used in the construction of dozens of the high-rises did not comply with fire safety requirements.
