Major science projects are over budget by 80 per cent

The government needs to control spending on big science projects, say MPs

The government and the science research councils have been told to take a better grip on expenditure on big science projects, after costs threatened to soar 80 per cent above budget.

The warning came from the Commons Public Accounts Committee following a National Audit Office review of projects forecast to cost £860m, including the second phase of the construction of a new Diamond Synchrotron facility and a research station to study global warming in Antarctica.

MPs warned that the research councils are having difficulty recruiting successful project managers and said they fear project teams have been underestimating costs, although phase one of the synchrotron and a new research ship have been delivered largely on time and within budget.

"The research councils have to get a better handle from the outset on the likely through-life costs of projects. It is alarming that the running costs of two of the six most advanced projects are likely to top initial estimates by a whopping 80 per cent," said committee chairman Edward Leigh.