Interviews of Key Personnel in Readiness Reviews
Edinburgh Tram Inquiry · Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report · Issued 1 August 2023 · Addressed to: City of Edinburgh Council
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation, Chapter 25 Recommendation 18 (paragraph 25.230)
As part of their investigations, representatives of OGC undertaking an independent “readiness review” of a publicly funded project and representatives of any person, including representatives of any public body such as Audit Scotland, undertaking a review of the progress of and/or expenditure on a project funded in whole or in part by public funds should interview key personnel involved in the project to ensure that each of them understands his or her role and is performing it effectively. In preparing any list of key personnel to be interviewed, the individuals undertaking the investigations shall include the person designated as SRO.
Edinburgh Tram Inquiry, Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report · 1 Aug 2023 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Council committee report (16 November 2023) stated that the Council agreed to support any future readiness review or audit to ensure clear understanding of progress and reporting (City of Edinburgh Council Committee Report, 16 November 2023).
- No published formal framework for mandatory progress reporting and escalation procedures in major publicly funded projects has been identified to March 2026.
Sources
How was this evidence gathered?
Response — verbatim from government
●City of Edinburgh Council — initial response
Council Leader Cammy Day stated: 'We know that serious mistakes were made in the construction of the original tram line.' The Council broadly agrees with Lord Hardie's recommendations but notes improvements were already implemented for the successful Trams to Newhaven project. The Council has not published a formal detailed response to individual recommendations. Source: Council news release, 2 November 2023.
City of Edinburgh Council · 2 Nov 2023 Written response →
●City of Edinburgh Council — follow-up
While this Recommendation is for third parties who may undertake a readiness review or audit of a publicly funded project in future, it is recommended that the Council agrees to support any such review or audit to ensure that there is a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities. Source: Chief Executive's report to Transport and Environment Committee, 16 November 2023. Note: City of Edinburgh Council statuses are drawn from the Chief Executive's report to the Transport and Environment Committee (16 November 2023), referred to the full Council on 14 December 2023. This report appears to have been formally adopted but independent confirmation has not been obtained.
City of Edinburgh Council · 16 Nov 2023 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 2 Nov 2023 Initial status based on Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council responses to the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report (September 2023). Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.