[cmicali]

Strongly disagree. I think this is the cynical view, and I'm sure is valid in many companies, but raising potential issues early is really important - other people can't fix problems if they don't know about them. It sounds like you have visibility into a problem that others may not, tell them! Don't assume people already know.

Like some of the other posts said - be real. If people don't respond well to this then the company has a bigger problem than a slipped schedule.

[qaq]

This is not cynical this just reflects how the world is.

[ljw1001]

You could be right, but in my experience it is extremely unlikely that the lead is the only person who realizes that the project is going to be late.

One sign this isn't healthy environment, frankly, is that no one has (apparently) asked the lead how he/she thinks the project is going. This also suggests that they already know and/or don't want to know.