A 2017 assessment on the Grenfell Tower disaster in London found that 72 "avoidable" deaths were caused by incompetence, dishonesty, and greed.

Delivered on Wednesday after a six-year investigation, the final report concluded that the shocking death toll was primarily caused by decades of failure on the part of UK governments, authorities' disregard for safety, dishonest and incompetent building material manufacturers and installers, and firefighters' lack of planning.

Those in the 24-storey block were “badly failed” over many years, said the inquiry chairman, Martin Moore-Bick, speaking at a news conference on Wednesday. “The simple truth is that the deaths that occurred were all avoidable.”

He added that the two-phase inquiry, which has convened more than 300 public hearings and examined about 1,600 witness statements, took longer than hoped due to its broad scope and because “many more matters of concern” had been discovered than originally expected.

‘Incompetence, dishonesty and greed’

The long-awaited report said the elements identified contributed to varying degrees to the rapid spread of the blaze and failure to rescue residents. This was largely due to incompetence, the chairman said, but in some cases “dishonesty and greed”.

The first phase of the inquiry had found that the fire had been fuelled by the cladding used on the building, which was made of aluminium composite material (ACM), a mixture of aluminium and plastic.

‘Gut-wrenching’

The London Fire Brigade was also criticised for a “chronic lack of effective management and leadership”.

The report said firefighters were not adequately trained to deal with a high-rise fire and were issued with old communications equipment that did not work properly.

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The report made multiple recommendations, including the introduction of tougher fire safety rules, the establishment of a national fire and rescue college and a single independent regulator for the construction industry to replace the current mishmash of bodies.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the report was a “gut-wrenching” read. He said that “more must now be done to hold those responsible to account, including banning any of the companies held responsible by the inquiry from receiving any public contracts as the police and CPS look into bringing criminal prosecutions”.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the report was a “gut-wrenching” read. He said that “more must now be done to hold those responsible to account, including banning any of the companies held responsible by the inquiry from receiving any public contracts as the police and CPS look into bringing criminal prosecutions”.

Those in the 24-storey block were “badly failed” over many years, said the inquiry chairman, Martin Moore-Bick, speaking at a news conference on Wednesday. “The simple truth is that the deaths that occurred were all avoidable.”

He added that the two-phase inquiry, which has convened more than 300 public hearings and examined about 1,600 witness statements, took longer than hoped due to its broad scope and because “many more matters of concern” had been discovered than originally expected.

‘Incompetence, dishonesty and greed’

The long-awaited report said the elements identified contributed to varying degrees to the rapid spread of the blaze and failure to rescue residents. This was largely due to incompetence, the chairman said, but in some cases “dishonesty and greed”.

The first phase of the inquiry had found that the fire had been fuelled by the cladding used on the building, which was made of aluminium composite material (ACM), a mixture of aluminium and plastic.