Row brews over temporary Olympic stadium

9 Oct 03
Britain's Olympic Games bid team could be on a collision course with the government and London's politicians over plans to tear down the main stadium immediately after the event.

10 October 2003

Britain's Olympic Games bid team could be on a collision course with the government and London's politicians over plans to tear down the main stadium immediately after the event.

The London 2012 Committee, chaired by Barbara Cassani, has acknowledged that it could lodge a bid for the Games that involved bulldozing the main athletics arena – despite ministerial and London Assembly opposition to the idea – because it would be cheaper than building a permanent facility.

A temporary stadium would cost around £300m to build, compared with £500m–£600m for a permanent facility. A spokesman for Cassani's team said it was 'one of many considerations on the table'.

Other cost-saving possibilities include a stadium adapted for use by a Premiership football club after the 18-day Games. The cash-saving ideas followed an International Olympic Committee report warning bidding cities about spiralling costs.

Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Tessa Jowell, however, has been at pains to promote the legacy benefits of hosting the Games, which would cost taxpayers around £1.5bn.

It has long been acknowledged that some of the venues would be temporary, but there is likely to be heavy political pressure to ensure that the showpiece stadium remains in place.

A spokesman for the DCMS told Public Finance 'that is the secretary's [Jowell's] preference'. He added that it was 'unlikely' that the main venue would be temporary, but said: 'We do not want stadiums to be built without a clear exit strategy – we need to assess their long-term future.'

Indications that the government and the bid team could hold different views on legacy facilities will fuel further criticism that the bid has been poorly co-ordinated so far.

Much of the public funding for the Games would come from council tax in the capital and some London Assembly members are 'livid' that a temporary stadium is even being considered.

Eric Ollerenshaw, leader of the GLA Conservatives, said: 'The idea is preposterous. How would we justify to taxpayers a massive investment in a stadium that would be bulldozed after the event?'

But Jeanette Arnold of the Assembly's controlling Labour group said she would back plans for a temporary stadium, providing it offered 'value for money'.

A final decision on the stadium will be made by the IOC deadline of November 2004.

PFoct2003

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