The Sun: Taxpayer 'Footing 14 Domes'

OVERSPENDING on major Government projects has cost each British household £900, a survey revealed yesterday.

A review of 305 schemes completed in the last two years or still ongoing showed over-runs added up to an extra £23BILLION.

The worst was the NHS National Programme for IT.  It was supposed to have cost £2.3billion but the most recent official estimate is at least £12.4billion - an overspend of £10.1BILLION.  In another case, the Ministry of Defence agreed to pay £2.8billion for 21 Nimrod spy planes but ended up forking out £3.5billion for just 12.

Fourteen projects bust their budget by even more than the £204million over-run on the notorious Millenium Dome.

The figures, published yesterday, were put together by lobby group TaxPayers' Alliance.

Chairman Andrew Allum said:  "It's astounding the government is currently overseeing more than a dozen Domes.

"It's clear the politicians and civil servants in charge lack the management experience and subject knowledge to run them effectively".

Tory Treasury spokesman Phillip Hammon said:  "Gordon Brown  has overseen the wasting of taxpayers' money on an industrial scale."