Stadium now costs 拢525m but overall budget has risen by only 拢16m
The Mayor of London鈥檚 Olympics watchdog has announced that the cost of the Olympic venues have risen by more than 拢100m since November.
Cost pressures have caused budgets to rise by 拢106m in the last eight months, according to Carphone Warehouse founder David Ross. He cites the example of the Olympic Stadium, whose budget has risen by 拢29m, from 拢496m to 拢525m.
But Ross adds that savings achieved and forecast elsewhere on the Olympic programme means that the overall budget has risen by only 拢16m.
Ross was commissioned by Boris Johnson last month to review London鈥檚 preparations for the Games. He interviewed senior personnel within the ODA, LOCOG, LDA and the Government Olympic Executive.
The report reveals the LDA鈥檚 concerns that the ring-fenced transformation budget of 拢350m will be too little to deliver legacy facilities for after the Games. It has appointed Capita Symonds to review the issue.
The Olympic Village, which is currently the subject of funding negotiations between the ODA and developer Lend Lease, also comes under scrutiny by Ross鈥� team. Lend Lease, it says, is having difficulty in securing private finance and in determining how much it will need to make the project viable.
The report said: 鈥淪ignificant additional public sector funding is likely to be required to deliver the project鈥�. At the moment, the Village鈥檚 拢800m budget is broken down to 拢550m payable by the ODA, with a 拢250m payable by Lend Lease. Ross said Lend Lease鈥檚 ability to recover that 拢250m is at 鈥渕ajor risk鈥�.
Ross is critical of the project鈥檚 security preparations, saying that it is 鈥渟ignificantly behind鈥� the rest of the scheme.
It said: 鈥淭here will be significant cost implications if security considerations have to be built in to the Olympic facilities/logistics at a late stage.鈥�
