Abuse inquiry

It is horrifying to hear from the Home Secretary that the planned public inquiry into paedophile activity might have to be disbanded for want of a suitably qualified and experienced member of the legal profession to lead it in this country (your report, 2 January).

It is also understandable that otherwise very suitable British candidates may be compromised, however distantly, by possible conflicts of interest. Why not therefore make an appointment from a Commonwealth country? There must surely be a number of suitable men or women with very similar experience and expertise to that of Lady Butler-Sloss.

Peter Laidlaw, Edinburgh