Didcot collapse: MP asks minister to explain ‘insulting delay’ to probe

An MP has written to the new policing minister about the “insulting” delay in concluding the investigation into the Didcot Power Station collapse.

Labour’s representative for Rotherham, Sarah Champion, asked Diana Johnson to clarify when the probe would be concluded, and to comment on the impact of the delay on the families of the four men who died in the accident.

On 23 February 2016, the boiler house of the decommissioned Oxfordshire facility collapsed. Michael Collings, 53, was found dead shortly afterwards.

The bodies of Chris Huxtable, 34, Ken Cresswell, 57, and John Shaw, 61, were recovered from the rubble over two weeks in late August and early September 2016.

The men, all employees of Coleman & Company, had been preparing for the huge structure to be demolished when it partially collapsed. Five other people were injured.

Cresswell and Shaw were from Rotherham, South Yorkshire – the constituency represented by Champion.

The MP told Construction News that the length of delay was “simply insulting”. She added: “I find it shocking that eight years after the horrific deaths of my constituents, the families still do not have closure. Only a court judgment will bring that.

“I am very concerned the demolition sector may be exposed to risk, as we still don’t know definitively what went wrong at Didcot.”

Champion’s letter to Johnson, seen by CN, reads: “I understand that investigations of this kind are hugely complex. However, it is now more than eight years from the collapse, with no end to the investigation in sight.

“Once the investigation is complete, families of the victims are likely to face still more delays as the CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] determines any charging decisions.

“It cannot be right that the families of those who lost their lives at Didcot be forced to wait for so long for justice, with no clear timetable for the investigation to conclude.”

She asked the minister to look into the issue, and to provide an update on the investigation and when it is expected to conclude.

Thames Valley Police and the Health and Safety Executive have been jointly investigating the incident, but no explanation of what happened has yet been provided.

Investigators are looking into potential corporate manslaughter offences, as well as gross negligence manslaughter and serious breaches of the Health and Safety Act.

As the eighth anniversary approaches of the recovery of her father’s body from the rubble on 8 September 2016, Sadie Cresswell, one of Ken Cresswell’s daughters, told CN she is hoping justice will be served.

“Our family remain hopeful in achieving justice for my dad, and we hope to see light at the end of the tunnel soon,” she said. “After the long struggle for justice for him, we trust Thames Valley Police will get the right outcome from this terrible incident that took our much loved dad, husband and grandad away from us far too soon.”

Earlier this year, Cresswell told CN about the family feeling as though they were “stuck in 2016”, without any understanding of why Ken died.

Tia Huxtable, one of Chris Huxtable’s children, was 11 when her father, from Swansea, died.

She told CN earlier this year that she hoped answers about the tragedy would emerge in the next couple of years.

“Hopefully the time it’s taken will bring the best outcome and justice for us families, the four poor men who lost their lives, and also the [other] men who have had traumatic experiences,” she said.

In a statement to CN, Thames Valley Police said its officers “remain completely committed” to fully investigating the collapse.

The force’s deputy chief constable Ben Snuggs said: “Our thoughts as always are with the families of the men who died. Thames Valley Police with the Health and Safety Executive continues to investigate the circumstances of the collapse at Didcot Power Station, looking at offences of corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, and Health and Safety at Work Act offences.

“We are aware of the length of time the investigation is taking, and the impact that is having on the families. Our dedicated investigation team continues to make continual and effective progress despite the investigation’s almost unprecedented scale and complexity.”

The statement added: “The investigation team continues to meet regularly with all of the families involved in this tragic incident, to provide them with ongoing updates.”

Johnson’s department, the Home Office, declined to comment on the issue.

Coleman & Company, now known as Colemans, has repeatedly said it does not believe it was responsible for the incident, most recently in its latest accounts.