Olympics legacy costs

The 2012 Games have been presented as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help regenerate one of the UK’s most economically disadvantaged areas. 

For several years now, our Budget and Performance Committee has critically examined the funding and cost of legacy development on the Olympic Park site.  It has also looked at the long-term financial implications for London of the transfer of Olympic Park land and responsibility from the LDA to the OPLC and ultimately to the Mayoral Development Corporation.

Future work

The Committee intends to revisit the costs of the Olympic legacy once the OPLC's business plan is published.

Areas it will examine include the Park’s long-term funding and legacy responsibility, the likely legacy of the Olympic Park site given the funding available and the adequacy of transformation budgets.

The first stage of this investigation looked at the costs and funding of delivering a legacy from the Olympic Park.  It also looked at the financial implications of the Mayor’s decision to change the body responsible for the site’s legacy.

Recent work

On 16 January 2012, we submitted our response to the Mayor's draft 2012/13 budget, which called for more details of how the GLA will fund its areas of responsibility, including the Games. 

On 10 January 2012. Members of the Committee asked Mayor Boris Johnson about the implications of the deal to cover Olympic Park debt during a meeting about his draft budget for 2012/13.  Watch the webcast.

On 5 January 2012, the Committee questioned the Mayor's Chief of Staff and other guests about the Mayor's draft budget for 2012/13 which was published on December 21. We heard that Olympic Park legacy plans will have to be looked at again in light of a new deal to cover the £231m of debt linked to purchasing the site.  Watch the webcast and see the press release issued after the meeting.

On 23 November 2011, we questioned the Mayor's Chief of Staff about the draft GLA budget, which shows City Hall is expecting to be left with £231 million of Olympic land debt with no commitment from government to help pay it off. Committee Members asked what this debt means for the GLA and the money it has to spend.  Watch the webcast of the meeting.

In October 2010, we published a report, The Finances of the Olympic Legacy Part 1, which raised a number of concerns about the implications of transferring the Olympic Park to the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC).

For more information on the investigation or to contribute your views, please email Tim Steer at tim.steer@london.gov.uk