London 2012: Cheap ‘n’ quiet
BJ the Mayor Bear has told MPs that he expects London 2012 to be “cosier” than this summer’s Olympics in Beijing. Considering the current economic woes, and the enormous scale of the Beijing games, surely this is something of a no-brainer?
Updating MPs on progress, the London mayor pledged to deliver a games “every bit as good as Beijing” without spending “colossal” sums of money.
He repeated his vow that the event would not go over its £9.3bn budget.
In light of the financial problems experienced building London’s other major “event” developments – Wembley Stadium and the Millennium Dome, you’ll forgive me if I remain sceptical that budgets can be honoured.
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Aaron Murin-Heath is an occasional contributor. He is a writer based in Newark-on-Trent and Tallinn, Estonia. He is both socially and economically liberal. Aaron blogs at tygerland.net.
· Other posts by Aaron Murin-Heath
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Reader comments
I share your scepticism to a degree, on the other hand:
1) the Dome was actually built to time and budget, just the exhibition inside wasn’t any good
2) construction’s going to be in its worst recession for decades over the next 4 years, so contractors and staff bidding up costs aren’t going to be as much of a problem as expected when the bid was made
Okay the construction aspect of the MD may have gone to plan, but the project itself – the dome as a going concern and the £1m-per-month maintenance costs over the 6-years it sat empty, suggests we have a lot to worry about.
construction’s going to be in its worst recession for decades over the next 4 years
Excellent point.
However, regardless of the supply and demand of construction workers (also remember major projects are probably already approved), the urgency of completion may give power to the construction companies, who in a difficult market, may see the Olympic park as a cash cow.
I hope you’re right, John.
The problem is that if a project has to be completed by a certain time, you can’t maintain cost control.
It’s important to remember that the budget was set long before Boris was elected and contains over a billion pounds worth of contingency.
Boris isn’t actually announcing anything new here.
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