Chilcot’s burden

Sir, Never underestimate the human factor when considering why some official reports take longer to produce than others. In 1989, I had the fortune — or perhaps misfortune — to be clerk of the House of Commons agriculture committee during its inquiry into the salmonella in eggs fiasco. It was a high-profile inquiry, because of the pivotal role played by Edwina Currie, but the committee produced its report, eagerly awaited, within a fortnight of the final session of evidence — mainly because, as the person responsible for drafting the report, I worked until 4am every day for a week.

David Robson

Oxford

Sir, Interesting as it is to read how various past legal and political luminaries might have tackled Sir John Chilcot’s daunting task in their own more efficient fashion, these armchair snipings are vacuous. First, Sir John and his team are performing a hugely significant and complex task and no one but they know the problems that they have encountered. Second, banging on the door of the jury retirement room and demanding a verdict is not conducive to a reliable result.