ETI-5 Response Accepted

Business Case Timing

Recommendation

Where the Business Case for any future light rail project is based upon an assumption that, prior to the award of the contract for the construction of the infrastructure, certain matters will have been completed (e.g. design, the obtaining of all necessary approvals and consents or the diversion of utilities), the contract negotiations should be delayed until completion of these matters has been achieved, failing which before any infrastructure contract is signed a new Business Case should be prepared on the basis of the altered assumptions that prevail and should be approved by the promoter and owner of the project.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- In November 2023, the Scottish Government stated it already operates in line with best practices for governance and light rail delivery (Transport Secretary Statement on Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report, Scottish Government, 2 November 2023).
- No published updated guidance specifically requiring revised Business Cases where pre-contract assumptions on design, approvals, or utility diversions have not been met has been identified to March 2026.
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
Jurisdiction
Scotland
Section Reference
Chapter 25 Recommendation 5 (paragraph 25.217)
Response
Accepted
Accepted Scottish Government
02 Nov 2023

The Scottish Government stated it already operates in line with best practices for governance and light rail delivery. Source: Transport Secretary Statement, 2 November 2023.

Read Full Response
Progress Timeline
Official Report
02 Nov 2023

Initial status based on Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council responses to the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report (September 2023).

Source
Report Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report 01 Aug 2023
Responsible Bodies
Scottish Government Primary
Recommendation age 3.1 yrs
Last formal update 1045 days ago