INSULATION firm Kingspan has spoken out after the report into the Grenfell Tower fire was released.

The firm, which has a base near Leominster in Herefordshire, came in for heavy criticism from Grenfell families alongside others, including fellow insulation firm Celotex and cladding company Arconic.

Grenfell United, which represents some of the families, said inquiry chairman Sir Martin Moore-Bick’s findings made it clear their lawyers were correct to tell the inquiry that corporate bodies, such as Kingspan, Celotex and Arconic, were “little better than crooks and killers”.

They criticised previous governments who they said “aided corporations, facilitating them to profit and dictate regulation” and called on some of the firms involved to be banned from government contracts.

READ MORE: Grieving Grenfell families slam insulation firm Kingspan

The deaths of all 72 people in the 2017 tower block blaze in west London were avoidable and had been preceded by “decades of failure” by government, other authorities and the building industry, the report concluded.

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In a statement, Kingspan said the company welcomed the publication of the report, which is said is "crucial to a public understanding of what went wrong and why".

The firm said it extends its deepest sympathies to those impacted by the tragedy, but went on to say that the report explained "clearly and unambiguously" that the type of insulation, whether combustible or non-combustible, was immaterial and that the principal reason for the fire spread was the cladding, which was not made by Kingspan.

"Kingspan has long acknowledged the wholly unacceptable historical failings that occurred in part of our UK insulation business," a spokesperson for the firm said. 

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"These were in no way reflective of how we conduct ourselves as a group, then or now. While deeply regrettable, they were not found to be causative of the tragedy.

"Kingspan has already emphatically addressed these issues, including the implementation of extensive and externally-verified measures to ensure our conduct and compliance standards are world leading.

"We remain committed to playing a leading role in providing safe and sustainable building solutions, including continuing to work with government and industry partners."