Tram chiefs' claims: 'Their costs are a matter of public concern'

Published on Monday 29 June 2009 09:21

WHEN lexicographers come to decide on the word that sums up 2009, there can be only one contender: expenses.

First we had MPs, fixing up duck houses and moats with thousands of taxpayers' pounds, shopping for 250 alarm clocks and even spending 1,200 on giant photos of themselves, all using the public purse.

The ramifications of the Great Westminster Trough Scandal have yet to be fully realised. Come election time, probably next May, scores of MPs are likely to have stood down, dozens may have been deselected, and perhaps – just perhaps – more than a few will have faced police investigation.

Then came the BBC. Last week we discovered that Auntie Beeb's executives had also been living it large, this time at licence-payers' expense. 100 for a bottle of champagne as a present to Sir Bruce Forsyth? Stick it on expenses. Need to nip back from a luxury holiday to Britain to deal with that foul-mouthed Jonathan Ross? No problem, charge it to the viewers.

It's all been a bit depressing and has just confirmed the views of the many cynics who have always assumed that no-one can be trusted not to help themselves when a big buffet of free stuff is available to them.

The fact that the MP and BBC expenses details were revealed by the media has of course raised chortles among those who suggest that journalists are the worst when it comes to maximising expenses.

But, whatever the truth of this accusation, the fact is that most journalists are paid for by private employers, who put in place safeguards to protect their companies' finances from fraud.

Unlike them, but like MPs and BBC bosses, the executives who are taking forward the Edinburgh tram project are ultimately paid for from public money. And that is why their extra costs is a matter of public concern.

Today, the Evening News reveals that in less than two years they claimed 100,000. Unlike MPs, these were not personal expenses. Most of it went on items like flights and hotels, and a good number of trips will have been necessary to meet contractors and suppliers, and to see how tram systems have worked in other countries.

So some such costs can easily be justified and will be worth it if they ensure that we end up with a good tram system. But when several thousand pounds went on unspecified sundries, and when former chief executive Willie Gallagher was able to spend 4,500 on "dinners and entertaining", we'll reserve judgement on that score until the trams are delivered at an acceptable time – and an acceptable cost.