THE cost of the child abuse inquiry could hit £7.5 million this year.
The original estimate for 2008 was £6 million, but a report by Treasury Minister Terry Le Sueur says that the extended work at Haut de la Garenne and the excavation at the German bunker site overlooking Gorey have pushed the costs up.
As briefly reported yesterday, the Treasury now says that the work will cost £7 million, but it wants an extra £500,000 in place to cover any unforeseen increases.
An annual budget of £7.5 million works out at just over £20,000 for every day of this year. Senator Le Sueur has tabled an amendment to his own proposition to secure funding for the investigation, which is due to be debated at the next States sitting on 8 September.
