THE fate of Hampshire's ambitious supertram project will be sealed after council leaders hold crunch talks to thrash out who will pay the project's spiralling costs.

A united all-party Portsmouth City Council delegation was travelling to Winchester Guildhall today to warn county council leader Ken Thornber they cannot afford to come up with an estimated extra £8m.

Portsmouth's new transport boss Alex Bentley said he could not justify spending so much council money on a scheme set to mostly benefit people living in Fareham and Gosport.

Now he is calling for Hampshire County Council to make up the shortfall or ditch the scheme altogether.

"We physically don't have any money. We are hard-pressed financially to finance all sorts of good causes. The supertram is a long-term commitment with a 27-year contract and we just do not have the money.

"Portsmouth has been forced to make the tunnel under the harbour deeper but we have not received any increased assistance from the MoD.

"The tram is an expensive scheme because a new track has to be built but there might be cheaper alternatives such as guided buses."

Cllr Bentley will be joined in what he hopes will be "frank talks" by the city council's Lib Dem leader Phil Shaddick, Conservative leader Frank Worley and Labour leader Leo Madden. Senior transport county councillor Keith Estlin will also be present.

Last month the Daily Echo revealed how the Light Rapid Transit scheme (LRT) linking Portsmouth, Fareham and Gosport was set to cost an extra £100m.

Backers of the LRT have blamed the spiralling costs on making the tunnel under Portsmouth Harbour deeper to allow for the air force's new carrier. Increasing construction costs have also contributed to the hike in price from £190m to £290m.

Of the extra £100m, Hampshire County Council will have to come up with £18m from various finance mechanisms involving public money. Extra interest payments will have to be recuperated from the council's budget, meaning taxpayers will have to stump up extra cash.

Plans for the LRT were first mooted in 1984 and the trams were set to be up and running by 2007. One of four shortlisted consortiums chosen to build and run the LRT will be announced in the autumn.