A report into the mammoth Bloody Sunday Inquiry will not be finalised for more than a year, it was confirmed today.
Lord Saville, who is chairing the tribunal into the shootings in Derry more than three decades ago has warned the victims' families that his findings are unlikely to be published before 2008.
In a letter he told them that the huge amount of evidence the inquiry has had to sift through meant such a delay was inevitable.
Lord Saville and his two colleagues have heard from more than 900 witnesses since the new hearing into the deaths of 14 people shot by paratroopers during a civil rights march in the city in January 1972 was opened.
Since the inquiry began in April 1998 its costs have spiralled to more than £170 million.
It has sat at the Guildhall in Derry in public session from March 2000 until the last witness gave their testimony in November 2004.
But with the families desperate for the truth after the original Widgery Inquiry immediately after the shootings left them angry and frustrated, they said tonight they were prepared to wait as long as it takes.
John Kelly, whose brother Michael, 17, was among those killed on Bloody Sunday said: "If that's the length of time then so be it because it's all about doing the job right.
"Widgery took just six weeks but this time it has taken so long because of the massive amount of material.
"It'll be ready when it's ready and patience is a virtue. We have all the patience in the world."
In his letter to the families Lord Saville is understood to have set out his reasons for the length of time it is expected to prepare his findings.
These include 922 witnesses and more than 1,500 pieces of written evidence.
The inquiry has also had to sift through a mass of computer and video material as it deliberates on what actually happened on the day.
PA