§ Mr. Robert Cookeasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what payments due to contractors for work carried out on motorway construction are now outstanding.
§ Dr. GilbertUnder the Department's normal contractual conditions, monthly payments are made in respect of work carried out. The conditions of contract790W allow for a period of four weeks during which the amount claimed may be examined. Bills for just under £7 million are being examined at present. This amount is not unusual.
Contractors may also claim payment for work not reflected by the original terms of the contract. Claims at present under consideration by the Department amount to about £90 million, against which about £10 million have been paid on account. These claims take longer to settle because they need to be substantiated by the contractors before they can be examined in detail. The payments ultimately made do not ordinarily overall amount to more than a third of the amounts claimed.