A long-awaited business case for reinstating the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway has been branded “the biggest fudge” a historian and veteran broadcaster has ever seen.
Charles Guard used his latest video to criticised the projected cost for reinstating the tramway from Broadway to the Sea Terminal rising from £2m to £3m in recent weeks.
The increase follows a Treasury insistence on a 50% “optimism bias” contingency.
Mr Guard said: “I’ve looked it up online. In effect it’s the Treasury saying that the Department of Infrastructure are being optimistic in being able to put this project together on budget and on time for 2 million pounds, so we’re going to throw another million pounds at them.”
He compared the figure to UK Treasury guidance, which recommends a contingency of up to 24% for a standard project.
The business case could be noted, not approved, at the next sitting of Tynwald, with members asked to “support its progress through the capital projects procedures”.
Mr Guard added: “After all the years they’ve been preparing this, after all the months that this has been honed, they want now to carry on talking about it.”
He challenged Treasury Minister Chris Thomas directly over a pre-election pledge, saying: “If you are a man of your word, you can do it right now.”