Former premier Brian Peckford demands immediate audit of Muskrat Falls project

Former Newfoundland and Labrador premier Brian Peckfordsays the Muskrat Falls megaproject needs an audit immediately.

In an open letter to Premier Dwight Ball titled "Audit Muskrat Falls Project Now" and dated July 4, Peckford premier of the province from March 1979 to March 1989 calls Muskrat Falls an "ill-conceived project" from the moment of its announcement, and says his anxiety has increased over time.

Peckfordcited Muskrat Falls'sballooning price tag, the SNC-Lavalinrisk report, and what he said has been a lack of accountability and transparency.

'Years from now will be too late'

For the former premier who said at the recent Newfoundland and Labrador Oil and Gas Industries Association conference that Muskrat Falls needs to be "rescued" the risk report was the last straw, and he called on Ball for a full audit.

"I call on you now to authorize through your administration a formal forensic audit and that you will also authorize a public inquiry if circumstances warrant it as a result of the audit," he wrote, adding that he didn't accept the argument that an audit would slow down the now $12.7-billionproject, increasing costs even more.

"Time is now the enemy of the good to anyone ever finding out what happened. A number of years from now will be too late new circumstances, different political dynamics, will mitigate against the real answers being discovered."