GOVERNMENT is refusing to reveal the expected final cost of a multi-million-dollar contract which has already run over budget by nearly 50 per cent.

And yesterday the Opposition United Bermuda Party condemned the "silence and secrecy", suggesting that the spiralling costs of the new cruise ship pier being built at Dockyard are yet more evidence of cronyism.

The $35-million contract was awarded to construction boss Dennis Correia ¿ a close friend of Premier Ewart Brown ¿ in the spring of 2007 and was expected to be completed within two years.

But in February this year the Mid-Ocean News revealed that the estimated final cost had mushroomed by more than 40 per cent to $50 million. No explanation for the hike has ever been given by Government.

In the last six weeks the Mid-Ocean News has repeatedly e-mailed and telephoned Government's Department of Communication and Information asking when the project is expected to be completed and what the final cost is expected to be. This newspaper has also repeatedly requested an explanation for the ballooning cost of the project.

A Ministry of Finance spokeswoman this week was eventually able to confirm that the pier is still on line to be completed by April 2009 ¿ but declined to give details of the estimated final bill to the taxpayer saying only: "No comment."

This newspaper has also heard reports that construction bosses are now simplifying the original design in a desperate bid to rein in costs.

Yesterday, Shadow Works & Engineering Minister Pat Gordon-Pamplin said: "It is unfortunate that Government again finds that spending taxpayer money must be kept secret from the people who are footing the bill.

"I can almost understand why the silence and secrecy have been employed. The fact that the Government has been unable to complete effective labour negotiations, that they are at loggerheads with workers' compensation, they would hardly want for the public to know how much is being wasted on this project.

"In addition, Government's stated intent to empower ordinary people is certainly being undermined by their granting contracts to a few cronies ¿ Dennis Correia, Zane DeSilva and David Durham ¿ where evidence is showing that almost every Government contract is being carried out in whole or in part by one or the other of these three individuals."

The development sparked controversy shortly after it was confirmed that Correia Construction had won the contract early last year. Rival construction firms claimed the tendering process was doctored.

"We knew that this was going to happen ¿ the writing was on the wall," one bidder said.

"We were just given a few days to put in our company profile but they [Correia Construction] have known about this job for two years."

And just last month, one Planning official mocked the tendering process, claiming that certain contracts were "a done deal" before they were put out to tender.

The insider also alleged that Dr. Brown ¿ assisted by Cabinet Secretary Marc Telemaque ¿ exerted pressure on Planning officers to rubber stamp "priority projects".

"As far as the new cruise ship terminal is concerned, Correia Construction didn't win the contract because it had the best proposal ¿ it was decided beforehand that they were the ones who were going to get the business," the official revealed.

"All they had to do was submit his application ¿ it was a done deal."

Dennis Correia was best man at Dr. Brown's wedding. Mr. Correia's wife, Jane Correia, ran unsuccessfully as a candidate for the ruling Progressive Labour Party in last December's General Election. His company has been awarded a number of lucrative Government contracts recently.