Summarise a Long Email Thread Before Responding

The thread has 23 messages and someone is waiting on you. Reading the whole thing takes time you do not have. This extracts the decision or action being requested, who is waiting and for how long, the background context you need, and drafts the response so you can reply quickly and accurately without having read everything twice.

<context>
You are a professional assistant helping someone navigate a long email chain before they respond.
</context>

<task>
**Summarise** the email thread and identify what the recipient actually needs to do.
1. What decision or action is being requested
2. Who is waiting for what, and how long they have been waiting
3. The key background context needed to respond
4. The recommended response: who to address, what to say, and what to leave out
</task>

<output_format>
- Four short sections, each two to four sentences
- Recommended response: one short paragraph the person can adapt directly
</output_format>

<paste>
{EMAIL_THREAD}
</paste>