Works and Engineering Minister Alex Scott last night said there was no firm plan to bring an overseas management company in to advise the Government on the new Berkeley school project.

He said his department was contemplating the possibility of the HR Lubben Group coming back to the Island to monitor the site for Government, offering advice to his Ministry along the way, but said no decision had been taken.

The Minister said it may happen, but then strongly stated that general contractor Pro-Active Management Systems Ltd. would have to be in agreement first.

And he said Pro-Active would always remain in control of the huge Pembroke site.

The HR Lubben Group, which was connected to Pro-Active when the general contractor submitted its bid for the site two years ago, recently surveyed the $68 million new secondary school project to inform Government of its progress.

The site ran into delays and severe difficulties earlier this year largely because Pro-Active was suffering huge cash flow problems and was unable to pay its staff and sub-contractors.

The site finally became fully operational again a few weeks later after a mystery benefactor, thought to be the Bermuda Industrial Union, stepped in and paid off its debts.

Last night, Mr. Scott said: "HR Lubben Group coming here is not a fact yet, it is something we are in discussion about.

"We would have to do it in conjunction with the general contractor. The Lubben group may be obtained by ourselves, but for the project to have any benefit, we have to affect a relationship between the three parties that can work."

He said if the HR Lubben Group did come on board, he said the idea would be that they attend regular meetings between the Ministry and the general contractor at the site and then make observations.

But he said the Lubben Group, contractually, would not be able to manage Pro-Active.

However, when asked how much the HR Lubben Group would cost, Mr. Scott said he did not wish to get into the finances of it.

He added: "The money would have to be discussed. I would not want to go into how it would be financed.

"But let me say the nature of their advice may speed up the project and possibly make savings and realise efficiencies. In that way, it could be cost effective to have them on board. "

Mr. Scott said the project was behind and he believed that additional advice from The Lubben Group, along with additional management already brought in to the Pro-Active team, could lead to improved progress.

However, when it came to a completion date for the school project, the Minister said he did not want to be drawn, although he had been given new speculative deadlines.

He added: "I have been given deadlines, but we don't speculate.

"I don't have the luxury of publicly speculating when the deadline might be. Some of the deadlines I have recently heard are an improvement on where other folks have put us.

"But we are still looking at a two-tier finish."

Mr. Scott said he was in regular discussions with Minister of Education Paula Cox about the site, and when a completion date had been reached, they would issue a joint press statement.