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No Griffiths apology over Bath Spa
16:52 13 Apr 2005
|
Construction minister Nigel Griffiths has refused to apologise for
comments made against Bath & North East Somerset Council
(Banes) over its role in the £35m Bath Spa project
fiasco.
Don Foster, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, wrote to Griffiths demanding an apology for acting like a "bull in a china shop" during his visit to the project, and for labelling Banes a "highly incompetent client" (CJ 16 February).
However, in a scathing letter of reply, Griffiths wrote: "You ask for an apology, I make none, since the apology the citizens of Bath and North East Somerset want is from you for your failure to intervene and ensure your council, as the client, act decisively to stop costs soaring and get this facility open. Your assertion that Banes is highly competent shows you have simply not grasped the scale and cost of this disaster."
Banes is still in negotiations with main contractor Mowlem over its £26m offer to complete the project in six months.
Don Foster, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, wrote to Griffiths demanding an apology for acting like a "bull in a china shop" during his visit to the project, and for labelling Banes a "highly incompetent client" (CJ 16 February).
However, in a scathing letter of reply, Griffiths wrote: "You ask for an apology, I make none, since the apology the citizens of Bath and North East Somerset want is from you for your failure to intervene and ensure your council, as the client, act decisively to stop costs soaring and get this facility open. Your assertion that Banes is highly competent shows you have simply not grasped the scale and cost of this disaster."
Banes is still in negotiations with main contractor Mowlem over its £26m offer to complete the project in six months.
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