Mr Galbraith blamed costs on the public sector

It follows suggestions that Mr Dewar was partly responsible for the rising price tag of the new parliament.

An inquiry into the process has been announced by present First Minister Jack McConnell, after the latest estimate for completion reached £375m.

But Mr Galbraith, who was a close friend of Donald Dewar, said the criticism was part of a "blame culture" existing in Scotland.

MSPs' and researchers' offices, more room for the press; things that Donald would never, ever have allowed Sam Galbraith

He told the BBC's Politics Scotland show that MSPs would do better to ask whether they could have done more to control the budget.

"It was handed over to parliament and suddenly there's an increase in floor space to be had," he said.

"MSPs' and researchers' offices, more room for the press; things that Donald would never, ever have allowed.

"He had a vision of a building of some architectural significance, marking this major historical constitutional change, that would be there for generations, but he also had the vision of a fairly modest provision inside."

Donald Dewar wanted a building of "significance"

Mr Galbraith put much of the increase down to the fact that the project had been taken on by the public sector.

"Everyone gets in, everyone wants to change it, every change costs more money and no-one accepts responsibility."

He added that his preferred option would have been to commission the building as a private finance initiative (PFI) venture, but that Mr Dewar had been against that.

The question of whether going for an open ended contract has added to the cost was, he said, something he expected the inquiry to examine.

Meanwhile, the Scottish Parliament's finance committee will begin its inquiry into the latest rise in the cost of the Holyrood building on Wednesday.

The project director, Sarah Davidson, and the chief executive of the parliament, Paul Grice, will be questioned.

MSPs Robert Brown and John Home Robertson, who sit on the two Holyrood supervisory committees, will also give evidence.