Bluenose II reckoning is coming, promises deputy minister
Premier Stephen McNeil's deputy minister says he doesn't know who's to blame
The premier’s deputy minister, who is now in charge of the Bluenose II rebuild, says there will be a reckoning once the project is over.
"I wish I could undo what's been done but that's not possible," said David Darrow, the province's highest ranking civil servant.
The schooner is years behind schedule and millions of dollars over budget.
On Tuesday, the province announced the Bluenose II needs even more work.
Darrow says his job is to get the Bluenose II shipshape again, then the province will turn its attention to what went wrong.
He says, right now, he doesn't know who's to blame for the delays and the overruns.
"I have no basis upon which to dismiss anybody," said Darrow.
Darrow says that doesn't mean someone isn't going to pay for what his boss, Premier Stephen McNeil, calls a "boondoggle."
"I wouldn't rule out any option but I wouldn't want to leave you with the impression, you know, that I have a plan to take anyone to court at this point in time."
In the meantime, the project has two new naval architects — one is charging $800 a day, the other $500 a day — to fix a persistent problem with steering.
One will design a hydraulic steering system, the other is working on making the rudder lighter.