• Question by: Richard Barnes
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

I understand that, but if Londoners might end up picking up the bill for the gap of £75 million then perhaps they might be interested in it. Are we comparing like for like now in terms of what the original bid was? I understand an access bridge has now been added to the Aquatics Centre and that has clearly inflated the budget for the Aquatics Centre. Whilst we talk about an Aquatics Centre now, as we did some time ago, we are not actually talking about the same project, are we?

• Question by: Dee Doocey
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

I have got two questions. The first is for John Armitt; could I bring you back to the budget please, and just for clarity I am talking about the £9.3 billion budget. Within that budget you have allocated just over £1 billion for venues. The press reported that the stadium costs have gone up to £500 million and that proved correct. They are also saying that the Aquatics Centre has gone up to £150 million so I am assuming, for the purpose of this discussion, that that is also correct. If that is the case it means that you have...

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

Can I just firstly thank Peter for his interest in my constituents and ask David [Higgins], would he agree with me that there are clear issues that we have to stay on top of. For instance, the travellers have still got to be dealt with. I have seen information that is suggesting that monitoring is going on. What I am not seeing is any written evidence about that, so I think what you could do, certainly to help Peter, myself and others, is to actually release information about the monitoring. I think that would help the different bodies interested in...

• Question by: Peter Hulme Cross
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

I attended the meeting in Hackney Wick about a couple of weeks ago when people were actually complaining about the dust that was flying around, particularly over the Clays Lane Estate and in that general area. People actually said, 'Having inhaled this dust I felt a real sore throat and burning eyes and burning lips,' and people were coming up to me after the meeting saying, 'Can you do anything about this?' I felt that there was a real concern. Now I know that there has been quite a lot of contamination on that site. I have documents here which...

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

What are the financial implications if you do not achieve those targets by Beijing?

• Question by: Peter Hulme Cross
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

Are you aware that there is a suspicion that there might be radioactive waste on the site? There were two instances I have come across. One was dumped in 1959 and another was dumped in 1953 and in both instances they say that the waste was possibly radioactive.

• Question by: Richard Barnes
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

London can expect no more shocks?

• Question by: Richard Barnes
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

I understand the commercial sensitivity but you will also be aware that the Aquatics Centre is perhaps foremost in Londoners' minds at the moment. It is the changing budget there which gives people concern. It erodes confidence. We know the overall budget has gone from £2.3 billion to over £9 billion, plus the costs of assembling the land, and Londoners have this lack of confidence in the figures that are being given. When we see that the Aquatics Centre has gone up from £75 million to £150 million, yet the roof size is being reduced from 35,000 square foot to...

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

Can I move onto Lord Coe. In terms of the position over achieving sponsorship, can you update us as to the overall level of sponsorship that is required in order to achieve the aims and where you are in terms of achieving that?

• Question by: Richard Barnes
• Meeting date: 10 November 2007

Can I thank you for that and indeed welcome you to the Assembly for the first time. I am aware of both your and Mr Higgins' industrial backgrounds and I am also aware of what you inherited when you took on the role that you have got now. I am conscious that you are sorting things out rather than ploughing a field from fresh. Last Friday the Mayor in an interview said, 'Crossrail is not like the Olympics; we made a guess about the Olympics and had to work it out afterwards.' How close are you now to getting it...