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Constant changes to Olympics budget have been "damaging"

30/04/2008

A report published by MPs today has claimed that the increases in the budget for the London 2012 Olympics have been "damaging".

The report by the culture, media and sport committee declared that the budget increases, to the current £9.325 billion level, have been "damaging to confidence in the management of the overall programme".

There was also criticism for the fourfold increase in the budget for the Aquatics Centre, which the report claims "appears to be over-designed … and an expensive way of providing the facilities for water sports needed during the Games".

"The history of the Aquatics Centre shows a risible approach to cost control and that the Games organisers seem to be willing to spend money like water," the MPs declared.

The committee claimed there were also concerns over whether receipts from the sales of land and property after the Olympic Games will be as high as the government and the mayor of London's office expect.

The report also expressed disappointment that a comprehensive plan for using the Olympics to maximise participation in sport in the UK has yet to be published.

The committee said that while there has been "a great deal of talk about the Games' potential to build levels of participation", the "profusion of commitments, promises and plans being developed is bewildering" and that "none of what is proposed amounts to a single, comprehensive, nationwide strategy".

There is also criticism for the plans to raise £100 million from the private sector.

There was some positive news for the Games organisers, however, with the committee concluding that the London Olympics should now be delivered within its final budget.

The committee's chairman John Whittingdale said: "We were pleased to find that, since we last reported, a more realistic approach has been adopted, and we expect that the Games should be delivered comfortably within budget, given that there is a 60 per cent contingency built in.

"We believe that the Lottery should have first call on any unspent contingency. We are disappointed that, so far, little progress has been made in setting out a clear strategy for delivering a permanent increase in sporting participation, despite this being a key feature of the bid."