Mounting anger over the sums of money paid to Sir John Chilcot and his committee have prompted calls for the Government to stop any further payments, amid demands by politicians for publication of the Iraq inquiry’s report without further delay.

An analysis by this newspaper of all accounts released by the inquiry reveal that Sir John, his fellow committee members, and their advisers, have shared more than £1.5m in fees since the inquiry began in 2009.

This averages out at £231,308 each. And last year alone £892,400 was spent on the wages of the 11 civil servants and three support staff who comprise the inquiry’s secretariat.

The inquiry has not sat in four years – the last evidence session was in February 2011– yet it has cost the taxpayer £5.5m in that time. In total, more than £10m has been spent, and there is still no timescale for the publication of the final report – which Sir John initially aimed to complete by the end of 2010.

Sir John Chilcot first announced the terms of reference of his inquiry into the causes of the Iraq war in 2009 (PA)

Although the figures released by the Iraq inquiry do not break down how much individuals have been paid, Sir John will have received more than his fellow committee members. He is paid 40 per cent more than the three other members of his committee, with a daily rate of almost £790 compared to the £565 a day paid to Sir Lawrence Freedman, Sir Roderic Lyne, and Baroness Usha Prashar.

In the past year alone, £119,300 has been shared between the committee and its two advisers, General Sir Roger Wheeler and Dame Rosalyn Higgins. Given the number of days they worked, that works out at a combined day rate for these six people of £3,615. “The whole way this has been conducted is outrageous. This sort of work rate confirms what we have all suspected – there’s no element of urgency in this inquiry. It’s completely unacceptable,” Jake Berry, Conservative MP for Rossendale and Darwen, said.

“We should have a fundamental review of the cost of this inquiry. No further payments whatsoever should be made until the report has been published,” he added.

The Iraq War: A timeline Show all 16 1 /16 The Iraq War: A timeline The Iraq War: A timeline 11 September 2001 Terrorists belonging to al-Qaeda use hijacked aeroplanes to kill 2,996 people in attacks on the east coast of the US. AP The Iraq War: A timeline 12 September 2001 Tony Blair promises George W Bush that the UK will support the US, whatever the President decides to do. AFP/Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline 25 March 2002 Jack Straw, Foreign Secretary, warns Blair that invading Iraq would be legally dubious. Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline June 2002 Tony Blair asks defence officials to outline options for UK participation in military action against Iraq. afp/getty images The Iraq War: A timeline 24 September 2002 The government publishes a dossier about the threat from Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction. A foreword by Tony Blair states that Saddam Hussein’s “military planning allows for some of the WMD to be ready within 45 minutes of an order to use them”. It is subsequently alleged that this dossier was “sexed up” for political reasons. Getty The Iraq War: A timeline 2 October 2002 Congress authorises President Bush to use military force against Iraq. Getty The Iraq War: A timeline 8 November 2002 UN Security Council passes resolution 1441, insisting that weapons inspectors be allowed back into Iraq and calling on the regime to give up its WMD or face the consequences. Simon Walker/AP The Iraq War: A timeline 18 July 2003 David Kelly, an expert in biological warfare, is found dead after being named as the source of quotations used by the BBC’s Andrew Gilligan to suggest that the dossier of September 2002 had been “sexed up”. Lord Hutton is appointed to chair a judicial inquiry into his death. GETTY IMAGES The Iraq War: A timeline 13 December 2003 Saddam Hussein is captured near Tikrit, after nine months in hiding. REUTERS The Iraq War: A timeline 2 March 2004 Bombings in Baghdad and Karbala kill nearly 200 people: the worst attacks since the fall of Saddam. Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline 14 September 2005 Bombs in Baghdad kill 160 people and injure more than 500. EPA The Iraq War: A timeline 30 December 2005 Saddam Hussein is executed. Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline 28 May 2009 The last British combat troops leave Iraq. Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline 24 November 2009 The Chilcot inquiry holds its first public hearing. Getty The Iraq War: A timeline 2 February 2011 The Chilcot inquiry holds its final public hearing. AFP/Getty Images The Iraq War: A timeline 21 January 2015 Sir John Chilcot confirms that his report will not be published before the general election in May 2015. Getty Images

This comes just weeks after a public spat between David Cameron and Sir John, who exchanged terse letters after The Independent on Sunday revealed last month that the report is unlikely to be published for at least another year.

Sir John told the Prime Minister that a number of responses from individuals who had responded to draft criticisms, in a process known as Maxwellisation, had “opened up new issues or referred to material that was not part of the evidence submitted to the inquiry, which we are considering with care”.

There is no “realistic timetable for completion” and this will only happen “when all responses are in our possession and have been evaluated,” the retired civil servant added. But the Prime Minister responded: “I am disappointed that the inquiry is not yet able to provide a timetable for the completion of its report,” and warned Sir John: “We are fast losing patience.”

He went on to inform him that he had instructed Sir Jeremy Heywood, the Cabinet Secretary, to meet Sir John to discuss how the civil service could help.

Yet on Friday it emerged that Sir John turned down the offer of extra resources to speed up the progress of the inquiry. At the meeting held earlier this month, Sir Jeremy is understood to have offered additional staff and help but was told that they were not necessary.

Sir John Chilcot and his fellow committee members have shared more than £1.5m in fees since the inquiry began in 2009 (Getty)

Roger Godsiff, Labour MP for Birmingham Hall Green, said: “It’s outrageous the way the public purse has been paying out a vast sum of money for this inquiry ... there are some people whose names will appear in that report, who it is in their interest to keep the thing running as long as possible so that the public memory becomes more and more distant.”

And Sir David Amess, Conservative MP for Southend West, commented: “I’m in favour of Mr Chilcot being given an ultimatum and if he’s not prepared to publish this report then he has to go. I think the Government now needs to step in, frankly.”

Lord Morris of Aberavon, former attorney general, who recently called for Sir John to be sacked over the repeated delays to the report, commented: “It’s completely out of control in my view and it’s being controlled by the alleged victims of Maxwellisation.”

And Liberal Democrat peer Lord Dykes said: “I am concerned about this report because I myself, like so many others, feel like there is a kind of cover-up going on – not by Sir John Chilcot himself and his colleagues but maybe by other people who are trying to delay it.” Asked which individuals might be involved, he replied: “People who might be connected at a senior level with the perpetration of an illegal war.”