The bill to repair Weymouth’s harbour walls could take up to 40 years to pay off.

A report to Weymouth and Portland’s management committee, which will meet tomorrow, says the cost of repairs to ferry berth three was £4.8million.

Further repairs are set to cost another £3.6million.

The report recommends that councillors approve paying £800,000 of the bill from capital receipts and a further £180,000 per year for 40 years through ‘internal borrowing’.

It says: “The cost of the repairs to berth three now totals £4.8million, which is a further £330,000 more than previously reported and this additional expenditure needs to be funded.

“In addition to the main harbour budget, there is a funding requirement for repairs to the harbour walls over the next 15 years.

“There is also a need for further funding of £3.6million for repairs.”

The report states that further improvements to the walls will be needed in order to secure a longer term agreement with Condor, but recommends that these improvements are funded by the agreement.

Chairman of the harbour management board Councillor Dominic Lonsdale said the additional improvements are part of an ‘ongoing repair plan’.

He said: “This is nothing new. When the area around berth three was being surveyed more than a year ago, there was survey work done right around the harbour as well.

“What was identified then were the parts that needed doing now and what could be done later and it came down to a 15-year plan at a manageable cost.”

He added: “Not all of the work needed doing immediately so there is a plan in place for maintaining the walls and doing the initial work.”

Coun Lonsdale said not enough money had been put into the upkeep of the walls in the past.

He added: “That is now catching up with us.”

Condor pulled out of Weymouth, switching services to Poole in March 2012, after cracks appeared in the harbour wall.

Emergency repair work began, which was originally estimated to cost £50,000.

But this wasn’t successful and a major works programme costing £2million began in April, 2012.

The bill for these repairs more than doubled.

Condor resumed sailing from Weymouth in July this year.