What makes the movie In The Loop (pictured) so funny is the way it portrays the chaos lurking just behind the veneer of government. Proof of its realism, if any were needed, came in a classic botch-up experienced by the Gazette last week.

On Tuesday, we got wind of a letter sent out that day by the Ministry of Justice, informing participants in talks on a new claims process for road traffic cases that implementation had been put back by seven months.

We called the MoJ press office for a comment, but by the time Thursday’s edition of the Gazette went to press that evening, none was forthcoming.

Early on Wednesday morning, however, the MoJ told us someone had blundered. ‘The issuing of this letter was an administrative error as no decisions have been taken by ministers on date for implementation,’ a statement said. ‘We apologise for any inconvenience caused and will be in touch with stakeholders very shortly once a decision has been taken.’

This was simultaneously annoying and amusing, and we prepared to put the record straight on our website on Thursday. We underestimated the speed at which official wheels turn. By the time we were ready with our clarification, and presumably after a lot of scurrying in the corridors of Petty France, our report was correct again.

On Thursday morning, the MoJ replaced its previous statement with this one: ‘Ministers are committed to delivering the new process as soon as possible but, in view of the need to ensure that this can be effectively and smoothly rolled out, have agreed that implementation should be deferred until April 2010.’

A couple of weeks ago we suggested that the MoJ must regret starting this whole process in the first place. This is not a statement that, at the present moment, we wish to amend.