This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/scotland/south_of_scotland/7277768.stm
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Rail link project costs increase | Rail link project costs increase |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The new rail line between Edinburgh and the Borders could cost more than twice the original estimate. | The new rail line between Edinburgh and the Borders could cost more than twice the original estimate. |
| The project's completion date has also slipped from 2011 to 2013, Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson confirmed. | The project's completion date has also slipped from 2011 to 2013, Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson confirmed. |
| A non-profit making company will be set up to pay for the bulk of the costs - a move criticised by Labour. | |
| Mr Stevenson said the original date put forward was "never achievable", given the decisions taken on the project by the previous Holyrood government. | Mr Stevenson said the original date put forward was "never achievable", given the decisions taken on the project by the previous Holyrood government. |
| The capital costs of the railway, between £235m-£295m, are to be funded by a "non-profit distributing vehicle" (NPD), meaning the cash will be borrowed from the financial markets. | |
| It is to be repaid by annual charges met from the budgets of the national agency Transport Scotland, and with contributions from councils. | It is to be repaid by annual charges met from the budgets of the national agency Transport Scotland, and with contributions from councils. |
| People in the Borders will be aghast Jeremy PurvisLiberal Democrat MSP | |
| Despite opposition party concerns, Mr Stevenson insisted it was a cost-effective borrowing method which avoided high interest rates associated with private finance initiatives and would keep the project in public ownership. | Despite opposition party concerns, Mr Stevenson insisted it was a cost-effective borrowing method which avoided high interest rates associated with private finance initiatives and would keep the project in public ownership. |
| "We will deliver a railway that strengthens some of Scotland's poorest communities, spreads wealth to the regions, and provides a real, sustainable, integrated, and cost-effective public transport alternative to the car," the minister said. | |
| The original estimate for the rail link stood at £129m, at 2002 prices, and its final cost will be negotiated during the procurement process. | |
| Labour transport spokesman Des McNulty said NPD had no proven track record, demanding: "How much longer must we wait for market soundings, for clarification over borrowing powers, and a competitive procurement process to be put in place?" | |
| 'Bit rich' | |
| Conservative finance spokesman Derek Brownlee added: "There will be disappointment - but probably not much surprise - in the Borders at this announcement of further delay and cost increases." | |
| He suggested there was a funding gap of between £50m and £110m - the difference between the final cost estimate and an estimated £155m from the government, along with £30m from local authorities. | |
| Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale MSP Jeremy Purvis said: "People in the Borders will be aghast that after reviewing this scheme for a year, the SNP government will only commit to starting the project some time before 2011 - and will also be deeply concerned that the way the government intends to fund this project has not even been written yet." | |
| The Liberal Democrat called for a full parliamentary debate on the issue, but South of Scotland Nationalist MSP Christine Grahame hit back. | |
| "It's a bit rich to hear Jeremy Purvis and Des McNulty say when are you going to start building it, when they had eight years to lay track," she said. |