Summary
This is the
first
in a series of National Audit Office reports on the preparations for
hosting the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
It is an early
look at the progress that has been made to put in place the necessary delivery
and financial arrangements since 2005. Achievements include setting up the
Olympic Delivery Authority, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic
Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), and the Olympic Lottery Distributor. The
layout of the Olympic Park has been finalised, nearly all the land has been
acquired, and work on the physical site is underway. The Olympic Delivery
Authority has published a draft Transport Plan for consultation and is
preparing the Olympic planning applications.
Proposals for the legacy
use and ownership of the venues are developing, along with plans for delivering
and measuring the wider benefits of the Games.
However, the
overall cost estimates for the Olympic Park have increased by some £900
million.
A number of areas of uncertainty remain and there continues to
be no final agreed budget, with implications for budgetary planning and
control. Substantial further public funding is likely to be required in
addition to the public sector funding package of £2.375 billion that was agreed
before the bid. The Government is also to provide £1.044 billion towards the
costs of infrastructure on the site of the Olympic Park. LOCOG has a budget of
£2 billion for staging the Games.
The main areas of risk that need to be
managed are:
- Delivering the Games against an immovable
deadline
- The need for strong governance and delivery structures given
the complexity of the project
- The requirement for the budget to be
clearly determined and effectively managed
- Applying effective
procurement practices
- Planning for a lasting legacy
- The
installation of effective progress monitoring and risk management arrangements.
How
does it affect me?
If you are live in London and are a London Council
Tax payer, work in the tourism industry or Lottery-funded arts, charities,
heritage or sport, or are interested in the hosting of the 2012 Games, this
affects you.
Read previous Have Your Say stories on this and other
arts, culture and sports topics.
