I want Crooked House to 'rise from the ashes' MP tells packed meeting
Black Country MP Marco Longhi says he believes the Crooked House can 'rise from the ashes' and is determined to do all he can to save it.
On Wednesday evening the Dudley North MP addressed a meeting at Himley Hall of 150 supporters of the campaign to re-build the pub, which dated back to 1765.
The Crooked House, in Himley, burned down on August 5 and was totally demolished without permission on August 7, with Staffordshire Police treating the fire as arson.
The historic site, known as Britain’s wonkiest pub, was sold by pub company Marston’s to a private buyer two weeks prior to the fire after being on the open market since January this year.
Many more people were locked out of the meeting,where people called for the pub to be rebuilt, with the cost met by the people who destroyed it.
Some also blamed owners Marston's for the sale and others raised questions over security at the site, off Himley Road.
Mr Longhi promised to raise the subject of legislation over pubs and historic buildings when Parliament returns next month.
He said: '"The legislation is different in Wales, say, and I will be knocking on Michael Gove's door to push for a change in it in England to prevent this happening again.
Mr Longhi urged residents to “be patient and let due process take its course” and avoid posting speculation about the circumstances of the fire on social media. "For now I would urge patience. I know everything has happened so quickly but there is a legal and police process ongoing and we must let it take its course.
"But we have right on our side. Make no mistake these actions were illegal and I am determined the Crooked House will rise from the ashes."
It was the second meeting on the subject in two days for Mr Longhi. He met officials from South Staffordshire Council on Monday, a meeting arranged by South Staffordshire MP Sir Gavin Williamson.
Mr Longhi added: "All the people who want answers straight away need to be patient.
“Facebook is a complete nightmare for us. People say what they feel, when they feel and it is unhelpful. “This is a complex issue. We are talking months, perhaps even longer.” I would love to see, in future, a Crooked House law.
“It is important we make a change in the law. Our historic pubs and buildings are not protected adequately.
“We need to change what we have in place now so the risk of what has already happened happening again is zero. “Developers, and I’m not necessarily talking specifically about this case, may feel they can get away with it, but you have my assurance I will be pursuing this every day until we get that changed.”
Mr Longhi also blasted the “disgusting” behaviour of people who have been taking bricks and other debris from the rubble and addressed the erection of security fencing around the site on Tuesday, which caused alarm among concerned members of the public.
He said: “What is unfortunate, which tells us a lot about society, is that it’s probably Dudley people who have taken [bricks] and think they can make a quick buck. “It is disgusting. I’m happy the fencing is up.”
Staffordshire Police said officers are following a number of lines of inquiry into the blaze, which was reported to the emergency services at 10.45pm on August 5.
And in a statement issued last Friday, Staffordshire Police also confirmed South Staffordshire Council was conducting an investigation into the “demolition of the entire building, without appropriate permissions”.