Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Asked by Labour MP Sandra Osborne about the conduct of cabinet secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood, Sir John says he has "no indication" that he acted anything other than properly throughout.

Conservative MP Bob Blackman might have to repay more than £1,000 in wrongly-claimed expenses. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) found the Harrow East MP submitted more than 700 "inaccurate" mileage claims. In a provisional report on its inquiry, the watchdog said claims submitted by Mr Blackman were "in almost every instance not accurate and greater than the distance travelled". Mr Blackman disputes IPSA's findings.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Sir John is asked whether the inquiry has experienced obstruction from the government over the course of its inquiry, to which he says it has not. However, he says the inquiry has placed "great demands" on government departments to produce "huge amounts" of material, and adds that they have found it difficult to respond as quickly as the panel would have liked.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Sir John says a promise to have access to any government documents has been honoured. He adds that the inquiry has had to review more than 150,000 documents, of which 7,000 the panel will want to deploy in the report.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Explaining the process by which those likely to be criticised in the report are invited to respond - seen as the main reason for the delays in his findings seeing the light of day - Sir John says of those being given time to respond: "A reasonable amount of time is by no means the same as an indefinite amount of time."

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

After questioning, Sir John tells the committee that staffing levels were not a factor in the report's delay, but says they will probably need more resources as the inquiry enters its final stages.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Sir John Chilcot says: "What I'm determined to do is get the report to the prime minister and out as soon as possible."

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Conservative MP Sir John Stanley says he is still unclear as to why the report has taken nearly six years, and not two years as expected.

Sir John says it was not possible then to have foreseen the nature and range of issues which would be disclosed progressively from the hearings and wide-ranging archive. When questions come up you cannot simply put them aside and say that does not matter, he says.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Referring to his letter to the prime minister saying the report would not be published before the general election, Sir John tells the committee: "We have to maintain the principles by which we have operated throughout, of fairness, thoroughness and impartiality."

He adds: "It's our duty to deliver a report which gives the government, parliament, the public, and particularly all those who have been deeply affected by events in Iraq, the answers they deserve."

Sir John (pictured) continues his opening statement until committee chairman Sir Richard Ottaway politely urges him to finish his opening statement so that the committee can get to their questions.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

Unsure what this issue is here? Although Sir John Chilcot never set a deadline for the Iraq report's publication, most people expected it to be completed by the end of 2011. No-one really knows why it has dragged on for so long, although the fact that it is expected to be a million words in length could have something to do with it.

Many of the leading figures in the decision to go to war, including Tony Blair, have long since left frontline politics. Mr Blair has insisted he is not holding up the process and wants the report published as soon as possible.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

In an opening statement, Sir John says he welcomes the opportunity to explain why it is taking longer than expected. He also informs the committee, with "great sadness", that Iraq Inquiry member Sir Martin Gilbert died last night after a long illness, and pays tribute to him and sends his condolences to his family.

Chilcot Inquiry
UK inquiry into Iraq War

The Foreign Affairs Committee's one-off evidence session with Iraq Inquiry chairman Sir John Chilcot is under way. He has been invited in for questioning by MPs about delays in publication of his report, after telling the prime minister he could see no realistic prospect of being published before the general election on 7 May.

BBC Radio 5 live

Labour donor John Mills has told BBC Radio 5 live that the accusation that Labour does not support big business has been "blown up beyond all reasonable bounds".

Responding to criticism by Boots boss Stefano Pessina and Yo! Sushi founder Simon Woodroofe he said: "Some of the comments that have been made over the past few days have been really rather poorly judged because these companies are going to have to work with a Labour government if it gets elected in 2015."

He added that Labour was well aware that it would have to "work together" with the business community if it wins power, saying: "No government can work successfully if it doesn't have the business communities interests' at heart and I'm sure Labour will do so when they get elected."

Is going to university always a good thing? Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb has said that the last Labour government's target of getting 50% of all young people through university was misguided, saying that university can be "disaster" for those who are more suited to apprenticeships. He was speaking during a visit to the the Sony factory in Pencoed.

The Guardian

It's fair to say that the Guardian's TV man Sam Wollaston, external was impressed by the first episode of Inside The Commons. In his review, external, he points out it uncovers characters far more interesting than the MPs.

He adds: "Cockerell records it all impartially and fairly, I think, but also with humour and a mischievous eye. I enjoyed the parliamentary sniffer dogs with "the eyes to the right and the nose to the floor". And after the mention of a bar (as in a place where you drink) immediately cutting to Charles Kennedy. Coincidence? I don't think so. It looks like it was fun to make and that translates to the viewing experience."

The Independent

The Independent's Sally Newall says the opening episode of Inside The Commons is "as much about the crumbling, leaking mock-gothic building as the people populating it"., external

She adds: "The rousing score and Cockerell's own stage skills added to the theatrics. 'The big beasts of the Commons jungle arrive just before noon, hoping for the smell of blood,' he said in Attenborough-esque tones. And it's the fact he manages to find the human side of those beasts, big and small, that makes this revealing series a winner so far."

The Daily Telegraph

So what did the TV critics think of Michael Cockerell's BBC Two documentary Inside The Commons. The Daily Telegraph's Gerard O'Donovan, external says it was "always going to be required viewing for anyone interested in the inner workings of politics in Britain".

But he adds, external: "You also got the sense that even those without any firm interest in politics could be enthused by this film. That was largely down to the freshness of Cockerell's approach, looking not just at the function of the Commons and its absurd yet historically vital conventions, but also at the decaying fabric of the building itself.

As the clock ticks down to today's Prime Minister's Questions, spare a thought for the two leaders who take part in the weekly Commons drama. In Michael Cockerell's documentary of the Commons, which broadcast on BBC Two last night, David Cameron said there was not a Wednesday "when you don't feel total fear and trepidation about what is about to happen". About five minutes beforehand, he said, "you think 'oh, have i got to do this again'. I think prime minister's have always felt that".

And what does Labour leader Ed Miliband make of the weekly battle? He told the same documentary that the anticipation was often worse than the reality, as once you get into it "you forget about the nerves". He said he had met no leader of the opposition or prime minister that has ever said they looked forward to it.