Games spending 'needs eagle eye'

Work on the Olympic stadium started ahead of schedule, ministers say

There must be "tight control over costs" in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics, MPs have said.

An "eagle eye" is needed to ensure the £1bn contingency fund is not exceeded, the public accounts committee added.

But "arrangements to manage the whole programme and the associated risks are not yet in place", chairman Edward Leigh warned.

The government said its commitment to not exceeding the £9.3bn public funding budget for the Games was "unequivocal".

In its report the committee noted that the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), in charge of building and infrastructure for the Games, had not yet reached agreement with Lend Lease, its preferred developer for the Olympic Village.

'Pressure to change'

Mr Leigh, Conservative MP for Gainsborough, said: "As legacy and security requirements are firmed up and as lessons from Beijing are taken on board, the delivery bodies must keep tight control over costs and time.

"There will be pressure to change venues and infrastructure, the delivery bodies must be quite clear about the costs of any such changes and their consequences for the programme.

"The rocky state of the financial and property markets has not helped efforts, so far unsuccessful, to reach a deal with the private sector to build the Olympic Village, expected to cost more than £1bn."

There is no clear evidence that elite sporting achievement influences people to take up sport in the long term Public accounts committee

He added: "In the light of growing uncertainties, the Department [for Culture, Media and Sport] should keep an eagle eye on potential demands on the £1bn of contingency funds which have not yet been earmarked."

The government has set the Great Britain team the target of coming fourth in the 2012 medals table and second in the Paralympics.

But the government is not even "out of the starting blocks" in its drive to raise £100m to boost elite sport, Mr Leigh said.

The report suggested: "There is a risk that, unless the activities of a wide range of public, private and voluntary bodies are properly co-ordinated, the focus on winning medals could distract the department's attention from encouraging ordinary people to participate.

"There is no clear evidence that elite sporting achievement influences people to take up sport in the long term, and Olympic medallists in certain sports such as rowing and equestrianism do not represent the make-up of the wider population, with a disproportionate number coming from privileged backgrounds."

'Ahead of schedule'

Efforts to raise the £100m from the private sector are expected to begin after next month's Beijing Olympics but the DCMS has not been able to say how it expects to attract private sector donors or provide any guarantees that the money would be raised, the committee noted.

A DCMS spokesman said: "Since the committee's last report, construction of the Olympic Stadium and the Aquatics Centre has begun ahead of schedule, construction of the Olympic Village has begun on time and three-quarters of the 2.5 square kilometre Olympic Park site has now been cleared.

"We told the committee that the £9.3bn budget for the Olympics cannot and will not be exceeded and that commitment is unequivocal.

"We have made progress in developing a range of proposals to raise the £100m private sector funding for elite sport with Fast Track as our official fund-raising partner.

"We are in discussions with a number of interested parties about a national sponsorship scheme to help our athletes prepare for London 2012."

Liberal Democrat sports spokesman Don Foster said: "Looking at the numerous holes in the Olympic project, one has to ask what on earth these various scrutiny bodies have been doing.

"Legacy plans must be finalised to ensure that the Games are a success. The government's inability to attract private investors for elite sport is also extremely disappointing."