Whats the problem?

Its a simple database server with a simple user interface, that requires security so tight it squeaks. £12.7 billion????? I'll do it for a pie and a pint.

So is the managers that have spec'ed it as a mammoth project, or the contractors who have sucked their teeth like some Del Boy mechanic and said "thats gonna cost ya". £12.7 billion buys an awful lot of hip replacements. Simple problem, simple solution, screwed up by money grabbing bastards