Labour MP David Lammy has labelled the Grenfell Tower fire as “corporate manslaughter” and called for arrests to be made over the disaster.

The Tottenham MP described the fire as an “outrage”, stating: “This is the richest borough in our country treating its citizens in this way.

“We should call it what it is, it's corporate manslaughter, that's what it is and there should be arrests made, frankly," he added, without referring to any individuals specifically.

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Shape Created with Sketch. Grenfell tower fire Show all 42 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Grenfell tower fire 1/42 Local residents watch as Grenfell Tower is engulfed by fire Getty Images 2/42 London Fire Brigade said there has been a number of fatalities from the blaze Rex Features 3/42 The fire was first reported in the early hours of Wednesday and continued into the morning Rex Features 4/42 A local resident sees the fire over the rooftops @Ebajgora 5/42 A firefighter reacts at the scene of the blaze Getty Images 6/42 Residents watch as the blaze continues Getty Images 7/42 More than 200 firefighters have been fighting the blaze PA 8/42 London Mayor Sadiq Khan has declared the fire a major incident Getty Images 9/42 Police and fire services attempted to evacuate the concrete block of flats Getty Images 10/42 A woman runs to assist paramedics working at the fire at the Grenfell Tower Getty Images 11/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London in the early hours of Wednesday morning Getty Images 12/42 Fire fighters tackle the 24-storey building in West London Getty Images 13/42 Ambulances are stationed nearby Getty Images 14/42 Paramedics arrive with oxygen Getty Images 15/42 Emergency services believe it will take some time to establish the cause of the fire 16/42 Tens of people have been taken to five different hospitals across London Getty Images 17/42 A man comforts a boy after the tower block was severely damaged Reuters 18/42 Firefighters stand amid debris in a childrens playground nearby Reuters 19/42 Firefighters are stationed at the building Getty Images 20/42 Smoke engulfs Grenfell tower Rex Features 21/42 Lots of people donating water, food and clothing to St Clement's church for the residents of Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road Samuel Osborne 22/42 A man speaks to a fire fighter after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 23/42 According to the London Fire Brigade (LFB), 40 fire engines and 200 firefighters are working to put out the blaze. Residents in the tower were evacuated and a number of people were treated for a range of injuries EPA 24/42 A resident of Grenfell Tower is trapped as smoke billows from the window after a fire engulfed the building Getty Images 25/42 Members of the emergency services work at the scene of a huge blaze which engulfed Grenfell Tower, a residential tower block in Latimer Road Getty Images 26/42 According to the London Fire Brigade (LFB), 40 fire engines and 200 firefighters are working to put out the blaze EPA 27/42 Fire fighters tackle the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 28/42 The burnt facade of Grenfell Tower, the night after the fire in Latimer Road, West London REUTERS/Neil Hall 29/42 Local residents gather at a community centre near Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road REUTERS/Toby Melville 30/42 A resident in a nearby building watches smoke rise from Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London AP 31/42 Police and rescue services operate near the fire at Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in Latimer Road EPA 32/42 A man stands amid debris on the A40 after a serious fire in a tower block at Latimer Road in West London REUTERS/Toby Melville 33/42 A view of the empty A40 highway after it was closed in both directions, due to the proximity of the fire at Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road EPA 34/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 35/42 Bodies are removed from the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Rick Findler/PA Wire 36/42 Bodies are removed from the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Rick Findler/PA Wire 37/42 Provisions on tables at the Westway Sports Centre close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Jack Hardy/PA 38/42 Beds are laid out in the Westway Sports Centre close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Jack Hardy/PA Wire 39/42 A pile of donated clothes, sleeping bags and water lie next to a police cordon near the burning the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 40/42 Signs asking for donations are seen outside the Notting Hill methodist Chruch Getty Images 41/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 42/42 A man is rescued by fire fighters after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty 1/42 Local residents watch as Grenfell Tower is engulfed by fire Getty Images 2/42 London Fire Brigade said there has been a number of fatalities from the blaze Rex Features 3/42 The fire was first reported in the early hours of Wednesday and continued into the morning Rex Features 4/42 A local resident sees the fire over the rooftops @Ebajgora 5/42 A firefighter reacts at the scene of the blaze Getty Images 6/42 Residents watch as the blaze continues Getty Images 7/42 More than 200 firefighters have been fighting the blaze PA 8/42 London Mayor Sadiq Khan has declared the fire a major incident Getty Images 9/42 Police and fire services attempted to evacuate the concrete block of flats Getty Images 10/42 A woman runs to assist paramedics working at the fire at the Grenfell Tower Getty Images 11/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London in the early hours of Wednesday morning Getty Images 12/42 Fire fighters tackle the 24-storey building in West London Getty Images 13/42 Ambulances are stationed nearby Getty Images 14/42 Paramedics arrive with oxygen Getty Images 15/42 Emergency services believe it will take some time to establish the cause of the fire 16/42 Tens of people have been taken to five different hospitals across London Getty Images 17/42 A man comforts a boy after the tower block was severely damaged Reuters 18/42 Firefighters stand amid debris in a childrens playground nearby Reuters 19/42 Firefighters are stationed at the building Getty Images 20/42 Smoke engulfs Grenfell tower Rex Features 21/42 Lots of people donating water, food and clothing to St Clement's church for the residents of Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road Samuel Osborne 22/42 A man speaks to a fire fighter after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 23/42 According to the London Fire Brigade (LFB), 40 fire engines and 200 firefighters are working to put out the blaze. Residents in the tower were evacuated and a number of people were treated for a range of injuries EPA 24/42 A resident of Grenfell Tower is trapped as smoke billows from the window after a fire engulfed the building Getty Images 25/42 Members of the emergency services work at the scene of a huge blaze which engulfed Grenfell Tower, a residential tower block in Latimer Road Getty Images 26/42 According to the London Fire Brigade (LFB), 40 fire engines and 200 firefighters are working to put out the blaze EPA 27/42 Fire fighters tackle the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 story Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 28/42 The burnt facade of Grenfell Tower, the night after the fire in Latimer Road, West London REUTERS/Neil Hall 29/42 Local residents gather at a community centre near Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road REUTERS/Toby Melville 30/42 A resident in a nearby building watches smoke rise from Grenfell Tower in Latimer Road, West London AP 31/42 Police and rescue services operate near the fire at Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey apartment block in Latimer Road EPA 32/42 A man stands amid debris on the A40 after a serious fire in a tower block at Latimer Road in West London REUTERS/Toby Melville 33/42 A view of the empty A40 highway after it was closed in both directions, due to the proximity of the fire at Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road EPA 34/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 35/42 Bodies are removed from the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Rick Findler/PA Wire 36/42 Bodies are removed from the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Rick Findler/PA Wire 37/42 Provisions on tables at the Westway Sports Centre close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Jack Hardy/PA 38/42 Beds are laid out in the Westway Sports Centre close to the scene after a fire engulfed the 24-storey Grenfell Tower in west London Jack Hardy/PA Wire 39/42 A pile of donated clothes, sleeping bags and water lie next to a police cordon near the burning the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 40/42 Signs asking for donations are seen outside the Notting Hill methodist Chruch Getty Images 41/42 Smoke rises from the building after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty Images 42/42 A man is rescued by fire fighters after a huge fire engulfed the 24 storey residential Grenfell Tower block in Latimer Road, West London Getty

Mr Lammy, who was speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, also said he had heard nothing from family friend Khadija Saye, 24, since the fire. The photographer lived on the 20th floor of the Tower bloc with her mother, Mary Mendy.

“As the seconds pass we grow more sad and bleak every second,” he said.

He added: “Many of us across the country have been caught up in an election, knocking on housing estate doors right across the country, travelling up to the the top floors of tower blocks and we know as politicians that the conditions in this country are unacceptable. We built buildings in the 70s, those 70s buildings – many of them should be demolished.

“They haven’t got easy fire escapes, they’ve got no sprinklers, it’s totally, totally unacceptable in Britain that this is allowed to happen and people lose their lives in this way. People should be held to account.”

Speaking about his “dear friend”, Ms Saye, who worked for his artist wife for a number of years, Mr Lammy added that she was a “beautiful young woman with an amazing career ahead of her, wonderful artist, her work is on show in Venice at the moment, and we've heard nothing”.

“We hope and pray that she is amongst them [in hospital] and not perished in that building as I suspect hundreds will have done by the end of this count.”

It is expected that Theresa May will visit the scene of the tragedy later on Thursday to speak with emergency services and ensure that they have the resources they need to deal with the situation.

There are still “unknown numbers” of bodies in the tower bloc following the inferno, London fire commissioner Dany Cotton said on Thursday. But at least 12 have already been confirmed dead after the fire ripped through the building in north Kensington, where the flames could still be seen burning more than a day after the disaster.

The commissioner told Sky News: “Tragically now we are not expecting to find anyone else alive. The severity and the heat of the fire would mean it is an absolute miracle for anyone to be left alive.”

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