The inquiry – which will begin at Glasgow Sheriff Court on July 22 – was ordered by the Crown after examination of a full police report and found no criminality. A preliminary hearing will be held on April 13.

Jack and Lorraine Sweeney, and their 18 year-old grandaughter Erin McQuade, all from Dumbarton, were killed along with three others and ten more injured when the lorry careered down the city’s Queen Street, past George Square, before crashing into the Millennium Hotel.

As revealed in the Reporter last month, the driver Harry Clarke, 58, will not face criminal charges over the December 22 tragedy, which happened after he suffered a heart attack at the wheel.

A statement from the Judiciary of Scotland said: “A date has been set for the fatal accident inquiry (FAI) relating to the road traffic incident which resulted in the deaths of six people and left ten injured in Glasgow city centre on December 22, 2014.

“The FAI will commence on July 22 2015 before Sheriff Principal Craig A L Scott QC at Glasgow Sheriff Court.” The Crown also revealed Glasgow City Council will not face prosecution, and no evidence of safety breaches were found relating to the crash, which happened days before Christmas.

A full police investigation into the incident was immediately launched, with interim reports sent to the Crown Office on December 24 and 28.