Tender is rerun as builders consider work on the 375-year old buildings too costly and complex

The Scottish Court Service has failed to attract one single contractor to pitch for a contract at its supreme courts because the work is considered too risky.

The construction element of the Parliament House project in Edinburgh is worth £35m. However work on the buildings, which date back to 1632, were considered too time consuming, costly and complex by contractors.

The expressions of interest failed to covert into formal bids and the Scottish Court Service has now decided to rerun the tender procedure in an effort to find a contractor for the five-year project. The new tender process is thought to reduce the potential risk to the contractor.

This is not the first time a project has found it difficult to appoint a contractor. The Zaha Hadid designed Glasgow Maritime Museum initially struggled to get an contractor onboard before HBG put itself forward.