CIVIL Service union leaders insisted last night that there should be no “witch-hunt”.
Jim Caldwell, Scottish secretary of the First Division Association, which represents senior civil servants and managers in the Scottish Executive, said: “We would expect information to be passed up in to the democratic chain.
“We are obviously concerned that that has not happened and we would want to ensure that these sort of things don’t occur again.
“We don’t believe, however, that there should be any witch hunt of any individuals as part of this process.
“Ministers and parliamentarians both at Westminster and Holyrood have had the finger pointed at them by Lord Fraser to a greater or lesser extent as well, so there are lessons to be learned by all concerned.
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“So we are willing to work with the executive to discuss any changes or reforms that need to be made to ensure that the problems that have clearly arisen do not happen again.”
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB), a group of senior parliamentarians who took on legal responsibility for the building in 1999, was partly criticised by Fraser.
But it vowed to learn from the inquiry.
A spokesman said: “The SPCB acknowledges the comments made by Lord Fraser on aspects of the management of the project since it assumed responsibility in June 1999.
“ It will be considering very carefully the implications for future governance.
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“The Corporate Body will also, of course, take careful note of the outcome of the debate in Parliament on Lord Fraser’s report.”