Opposition Spokesman on Health, Dr. Alfred Dawes is again calling for an audit of the Cornwall Regional Hospital Rehabilitation Project to ensure accountability and efficient use of taxpayers’ funds.

Dr. Dawes notes that the project has been plagued by escalating costs and indefinite variations in scope.

The budget for the project has been revised several times and is now up to $21 billion from an earlier figure of $4 billion.

Noting that questions about the project’s budget have been raised several times by Former Spokesman on Health Dr. Morais Guy, Dr. Dawes says these questions linger.

With countless missed deadlines and limited information on the project’s scope, cost overruns, and performance bonds, Dr. Dawes says it is highly likely that even further delays and cost increases could be encountered.

He says it is imperative that the Cabinet collectively takes responsibility for accounting for how taxpayers’ funds have been spent and exercise greater control over budgetary allocations, in the best interest of the Jamaican taxpayer.