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- guardian.co.uk, Monday 23 November 2009 22.27 GMT
Tomorrow's public hearing marks the culmination of months of speculation as to whether the Chilcot inquiry will address the most sensitive issues surrounding the war in Iraq. The inquiry is the third in Britain to look into aspects of the Iraq war and has been given a deliberately wide mandate to examine events before, during and after the invasion of Iraq.
The decision to allow public scrutiny of the inquiry, after an embarrassing climbdown by the government, which had initially attempted to hold the hearings behind closed doors, has done little to quell criticisms of the hearings.
Chilcot sat on the 2003 Hutton inquiry, where his questioning of key witnesses, including Lord Goldsmith, then attorney general, was criticised for being "light touch".
His close relationship with many military and government figures has led to accusations that he is a safe pair of hands, and forced him to defend allegations that the inquiry will be a whitewash.
The composition of the inquiry has also attracted controversy, with no senior legal or judicial figures on the panel. None of the panel members have spoken out strongly against the war, prompting concerns that a wide range of views is not represented.
It has also been argued that the scope of the inquiry is too broad, presenting the risk that detailed and complex questions, such as whether the decision to go to war was legal, will not be properly addressed.
These criticisms have been thrown into sharper relief by news that these aspects of the British decision to invade Iraq are being examined in detail in the Netherlands. The Dutch interest stems from the fact that the Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, was also persuaded by Britain's position on the legality of the war to support the invasion.
Prof Philippe Sands QC, an expert in international law who has been at the forefront of claims that Tony Blair overrode legal advice and lied to parliament, was called by the inquiry in the Netherlands to give evidence on the question of legality.
But what is most revealing about the Dutch inquiry is the comparison between its approach and the Chilcot inquiry. The Dutch inquiry is composed of a seven-member panel, including two of Europe's most senior judges and other figures who have expressed opposition to the war.
The Dutch inquiry, which will report its findings in January, could add further pressure to Chilcot to analyse the question of legality. Both the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats have said they are keenly awaiting the outcome.
"The idea that controversial British legal advice on Iraq may have swayed the view of the Dutch government will be painfully embarrassing for the government", said Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrats' foreign affairs spokesman.
"It is critical that our own Iraq war inquiry gets to the bottom of the legal advice question."