London: A report on a deadly apartment block fire in London condemned the London Fire Brigade and concluded that fewer people would have died if the building were evacuated more quickly.

Flames rise from the Grenfell Tower building on fire in London where 72 people died. Credit:AP

Britain's Press Association said the leaked report, which was to be published on Wednesday, also accused brigade Commissioner Dany Cotton of "remarkable insensitivity" for testifying that she would not have done anything differently in the early hours of the June 14, 2017 blaze that killed 72 people at Grenfell Tower.

Inquiry chairman Martin Moore-Bick criticised a fire department policy that led to residents in the public housing building being told to stay in their apartments to await rescue.

The order remained in place for nearly two hours after the blaze broke out just before 1am and was not rescinded until 2.47am as the building was engulfed in flames.