It may take decades but one day there may be a reckoning for the CIA

I think in the current political climate it is almost inconceivable that there will be that we will see former or current CIA officers actually in the dock.

Remember that in just a few weeks time the Senate switches over to Republican control, and in that party there is absolutely no appetite to put Bush-era officials on trial.

But things can change, as the UN special rapporteur on torture told us today, what is unlikely now is conceivable in 30 years time. He wants to see prosecutions, not just of the interrogators but also all the way the chain of command to those who actually designed the programme itself.

As he put it, he believes at some stage, one day, there will come a day of reckoning, there will be accountability.