reduced relative clause

[Sitifan]

The person writing reports is my colleague.

The above sentence may be interpreted, according to the context, as equivalent to one of the more explicit versions in the following.

1. The person who will write reports is my colleague.

2. The person who will be writing reports is my colleague.

3. The person who writes reports is my colleague.

4. The person who is writing reports is my colleague.

5. The person who wrote reports is my colleague.

6. The person who was writing reports is my colleague.

A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language, Quirk, et al.

However, according to Michael Swan, we should use a relative clause to express a non-progressive meaning.

7. The man who threw the bomb was arrested.

NOT 8. *The man throwing the bomb was arrested.

If Quirk is right, sentence #8 should be acceptable, shouldn't it?

If Swan is right, the underlined sentence cannot normally be interpreted as 1, 3, or 5.

Who do you think is right, Quirk or Swan?
_________________
Thank you very much for your reply.

[Mister Micawber]

.
I'll go with Quirk et al except for #5 and #6.
.
_________________
Native English teacher at Mister Micawber's

[Sitifan]

5. The person who wrote reports is my colleague.
5a. The person who wrote reports was my colleague.
6. The person who was writing reports is my colleague.
6a. The person who was writing reports was my colleague.
I think 5a & 6a do not always have the same meanings as 5 & 6.
5 & 6 mean that the person writing reports is your colleague NOW.
5a & 6a can sometimes be ambiguous. If you say the person writing reports was your colleague, is he/she still your colleague NOW?
_________________
Thank you very much for your reply.

[Mister Micawber]

.
Probably not your colleague, but they could be. Envision being led around an office by an employee. After having passed the writer's desk, and moving on to other facilities, you think to ask:

S: Who was that fellow writing reports back there?
M: Him? Oh, that was/is my colleague.
.
_________________
Native English teacher at Mister Micawber's