London 2012 ceremonies budget doubled

The Government has released £41 million of public money to help fund the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The extra cash now takes the budget for the four ceremonies to over £80 million – doubling the original budget to over £80 million. A total of £34 million has been handed over to LOCOG now and a further £7 million is being held as a contingency.

The figures have been released in the Government’s Olympic Quarterly Economic Report, which states that the Games are on track to be delivered on time and on budget. Yet, an extra £271 million has also been granted by Government to fund an extra 23,700 venue security personnel, which have been identified as necessary following the creation of more detailed security plans.

Minister for Sport and the Olympics Hugh Robertson said: “As was always planned, the Government and LOCOG have now undertaken detailed analysis of the numbers of security staff required to protect the more than 100 Olympic venues. As a result, to ensure a safe and secure Games, they have revised the numbers of trained staff required.  We are therefore investing additional funds in providing nearly 24,000 venue security personnel plus specialist security equipment.
“London’s opening and closing ceremonies are a once-in-a-generation opportunity to showcase the very best of our country to four billion people around the world and have a potential advertising value of £2-5 billion. To get the ceremonies absolutely right, and boost the Games business and tourism legacy, we are putting additional investment into our ceremonies.”