Two US House committees will delay former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s planned July 17 testimony for one week to allow lawmakers to question him for a longer period of time, the committees say.

Mueller, who oversaw the federal investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, is now scheduled to testify on July 24 before the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees, the panels’ chairmen said in a statement.

Under the new agreement, Mueller will appear before the Judiciary Committee for three hours. Following that testimony, Mueller will then appear before the Intelligence Committee.

Donald Trump will be anxiously awaiting Mueller’s revelations at the extended hearings. Photo: Getty

“All members – Democrats and Republicans – of both committees will have a meaningful opportunity to question the Special Counsel in public, and the American people will finally have an opportunity to hear directly from Mr. Mueller about what his investigation uncovered,” said Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler and Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff.

Lawmakers had made conflicting statements about the hearing earlier on Friday.

Several predicted a delay, but some said a final agreement was not yet in hand.

The uncertainty was an unwelcome distraction for Democrats, who have billed Mueller’s testimony as a potential watershed moment that could focus attention on segments of his 448-page report that raise questions about Republican President Donald Trump’s efforts to impede the federal investigation.

Lawmakers began to consider a delay when Judiciary Committee members saw that many of the panel’s less senior lawmakers would not get time to ask questions.

“Everyone on the committee wants an opportunity to examine Mr. Mueller,” said Representative David Cicilline, a senior House Judiciary Democrat. “We have been arguing for as much time as we can get. Obviously, we want to make sure that there’s a full hearing.”

Republican protests about the arrangements boiled over earlier this week, when Republicans accused Schiff of upstaging the Judiciary Committee, despite its primary jurisdiction over special counsel investigations.

-AAP