5 Having scoped the study through the issue analysis, we collected the evidence that would answer our audit questions through four principal streams of work activities.
■ File review
■ Interviews with key parties
■ Observations of selected scientific research conducted in the existing buildings
■ Desk top studies of selected problems encountered in the new facilities
6 During the file review, we collected the contemporaneous records that informed us about the conduct of the Department throughout the project. There was a considerable volume of material available to us. To break the task down into a manageable activity, we initially restricted our review to:
■ Minutes to Ministers
■ Minutes of meetings of the Department's project steering group
■ Minutes of pre-contract meetings with Laser
■ Reports from the Department's advisers
■ Project progress reports
■ The Contract Documents including the Technical Arrangement and the Sale and Termination Agreement
■ The documents prepared for the three adjudications
■ Various financial models
7 After sourcing the above, we extended the file review to cover correspondence between Laser and the Department that was relevant to the former's performance under the contract. Laser willingly granted us access to its files from which we secured records that illuminated some aspects of the relationship between Laser and the Lenders.
8 To obtain first hand accounts of the views that various parties held about the project, we conducted semi-structured interviews with key advisers to the Department (Herbert Smith, HDR and Bovis Lend Lease), two former directors from Laser (one appointed by John Laing plc and the other by Serco Group plc), representatives from Bank of America and Abbey, the executive chairman of Serco Group plc and the Independent Certifier.
9 We observed four scientific research projects conducted in the existing facilities. We selected the four research programmes to witness for ourselves the fallback arrangements that the Department had had to adopt and the difficulties of conducting leading edge science in the existing facilities. Each observation involved interviewing and shadowing a selected scientist over a four week period.
10 We conducted detailed desk top studies of six selected problems that affected the new facilities. Included in this list were the three problems that the parties referred to adjudication.
11 We conducted a high level validation of the Department's assessment of the range in which the termination sum might fall. We examined the assumptions made, and the inputs used by the Department. We compared the results against the provisions in the contract.