The senior civil servant responsible for guidance on fire safety in buildings for nearly 17 years before the Grenfell Tower tragedy has said a fatal 2009 cladding fire was not “severe” enough to prompt an investigation into similar buildings.

Six people, including three children, were killed at Lakanal House in Camberwell, London when the 14-storey block’s non-compliant cladding caught fire and rapidly spread across the building.