When the Olympic Contingency budget is spent, what then?
THE Olympics contingency budget is worth £2.7 billion. It’s to be used when the costs overrun the project. It’s nearly all been accounted for. The budget for the London 2012 Games is £9.3billion – nearly four times the £2.4bn estimate when London’s bid succeeded.
Although the former Olympic Minster Tessa Jowell did tell the Commons in 2003 that the government “will review the [spending] package in 2005 in the light of what by then will be firmer and more detailed estimates of the costs of staging the games“.
How did the £2.4bn budget come about, then? It’s a number so shy of the actual figure it makes us wonder if it part of deliberate ploy to make the taxpayer feel less banjaxed?
In 2007, John Armitt, chairman of the Olympics Delivery Authority – now Sir John – told the Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee that a £2.7billion reserve of guaranteed cash was “very sensible“.
Now nearly all of that has been accounted for.
Expect more money to be found shortly…
Posted: 11th, January 2012 | In: Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
