RIGA - Saeima investigative committee's interim report clearly points to the moment when the Rail Baltica railroad project "wad derailed", Andris Kulbergs (United List), head of Saeima investigative committee on the Rail Baltica project, said at a Saeima sitting on Thursday.
On Thursday, the committee's interim report on implementation of the Rail Baltica project was presented to Saeima.
The committee's findings are a litmus test for the Cabinet of Ministers - the government can now demonstrate to the public that mistakes in the relevant ministers' work have finally been identified and will be corrected, so that we do not all have to pay twice for some people's negligence, said Kulbergs. "From the moment the interim report is made public, the accountability (and not just political accountability) meter starts running for all ministers in the current government," he emphasized.
The projected cost of implementation of the Rail Baltica project in Latvia has risen from the original EUR 1.97 billion to EUR 9.59 billion.
The investigative committee points out that the interim report is not a final report, and that full conclusions and proposals of the committee will be included in the final report. However, the committee has already arrived at specific findings and conclusions, which have been included in the interim report.
The committee's interim report lists 13 conclusions, including on why implementation of the project has been delayed by at least three years, as well as on responsibility of the officials of the Transport Ministry, the Finance Ministry, the Economics Ministry, and state-owned companies involved in the project.
The committee has so far held 16 meetings and also visited Rail Baltica stations at Riga Airport and the Riga Central Rail Station.
As reported, Saeima on June 13 decided to set up a parliament inquiry committee, proposed by a group of 34 opposition and unaffiliated lawmakers to examine the mistakes made during the implementation of the Rail Baltica railway project.
The ad hoc panel was given six months to investigate the project's mistakes. Kulbergs was appointed head of the commission.
The ad hoc panel was tasked with identifying the mistakes that have been made while implementing the transnational railway infrastructure project, "so that decisions are taken in a transparent and timely manner, taking into account the national and public interest, the impact on the Latvian economy and the state budget," the lawmakers said.
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