PART FOUR Ultimately, the termination sum should be value for money

4.1  The investment appraisal leading up to the 1998 deal made the case for the new buildings mainly on the grounds that the facilities at Teddington needed radical improvement if the NPL was to retain its leading position in its field. We did not reopen this appraisal but focused our examination on whether the termination sum was reasonable within the terms of the project, how the Department is preparing to complete the project, and the impact that the termination and the problems that led up to it have had on the Department's and the private sector's costs.