AN under-fire coroner should find out this week if he is to be ordered to retire.

Teesside coroner Michael Sheffield, whose backlog of unfinished inquests sparked a judicial review, will get a letter from the Lord Chancellor about his future.

The Northern Echo understands that Mr Sheffield will either be told he can continue in his job, told to leave, or be given a retirement date with certain conditions.

It is believed he will receive the letter this week and will be given three weeks to respond to the recommendations before a final decision is taken.

A public announcement is expected to be made by the Lord Chancellor's Department at the end of June - almost a year after concerns were first raised.

The long-running saga started last July when the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, appointed a circuit judge to investigate allegations that inquests were taking as long as two years to be completed.

Judge John Milford's findings were presented to the Lord Chancellor in December, and it appears that he has finally made a provisional recommendation. The delay prompted criticism from politicians who called for Mr Sheffield to retire so a replacement could be appointed to clear up the outstanding cases.

Five Teesside MPs - Dari Taylor, Vera Baird, Dr Ashok Kumar, Stuart Bell and Frank Cook - wrote to Lord Falconer last month demanding that the recommendations were made public immediately.

Mr Sheffield, who has been Teesside Coroner for more than 30 years, was criticised by MPs and grieving families when it emerged last year he had a backlog of 200 inquests.

He blamed a lack of experienced coroners' officers for the delays and called for more money from Cleveland Police to help clear his workload.

Mr Sheffield will be informed of a final decision following further consultation between Lord Falconer and the Lord Chief Justice, but the report by Judge Milford will not be made public.

Ms Baird, MP for Redcar, said: "I have written to Lord Falconer saying it was the public who drove the MPs to make the complaints about Mr Sheffield and hence the public are entitled not only to have an outcome but also the rationale behind the outcome.