ODA £200 Parking Fine Nixed

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has been thwarted in its plans to levy fines of £200 on those who park on the Olympic Route Network (ORN) during the Games.

Kerching!

The transport secretary Justine Greening has rejected this plan, noting that it would be an unnecessary burden in a challenging economic climate.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Porridge

It seems that whilst those who compete in the Olympics stadium this year will be fit and healthy, many of those who constructed it were/are not.

The Olympics Delivery Authority (ODA) have stated that many of the 12,000 builders working on the stadium were living an 'unhealthy lifestyle', and that 28% were obese.

It seems that the workforce were living the high life at night (gorging on takeaways etc), then skipping breakfast. This then caused them to be fatigued by lunchtime, and increased the accident rate.

The solution offered by ODA was to serve bowls of porridge at £1 a bowl.

Accidents in the morning apparently decreased, as blood sugar levels and food cravings were "normalised".


Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Deighton's Bonus Reviewed

The Telegraph reports that, as a result of the ongoing uproar over bonuses to directors of failing organisations, that the remuneration commission will determine if the complicated series of bonuses due to London organising committee (Locog) chief executive Paul Deighton will be maintained.

In theory Deighton could earn a £1M bonus, which he has already stated will go to charity.

The remuneration committee will also review the bonus of the previous chief executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority, now Network Rail chief Sir David Higgins.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Travel Chaos

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has warned that normal commuter travel patterns in London will be disrupted during the 2012 Olympics.

The ODA told the London Assembly transport committee that there would be changes to rush-hour patterns, as crowds use some busier Tube lines.

No surprises there then!

The key question is will the transport infrastructure actually be able to cope?

Meanwhile, motorists face the unpleasant prospect of being fined £200 if they have the temerity to stray onto any of the reserved Olympic lanes during the games.

Commuters will endure a truly horrendous experience during the games.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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ODA CEO Quits

David Higgins, CEO of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), has quit in order to join Network Rail.

He will leave in February 2011, and will be replaced by the ODA's current finance director Dennis Hone.

Last year Higgins was awarded a bonus of £200K (a large part of which he deferred), on top of his £384K salary.

Is this really the best time for him to leave?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Food Matters

Whilst the ODA may think that it has a great plan for ferrying athletes, IOC officials, the media and assorted Olympics hangers on to and from the 2012 London Olympics (via specially designated Olympics routes) it may have forgotten the needs of the ordinary people of London.

How, for instance, is fresh food going to be transported around the capital if some of the key routes are blocked for use by Olympics officials et al?

Natalie Chapman, of the Freight Transport Association (FTA), is quoted in the Telegraph:

"It will be a huge challenge.

Difficult is the understatement of the century. It will be pretty hellish, especially as we are expecting an upsurge in business and will have to make even more deliveries with less time available to us.

With non-perishable goods it would be sensible to stockpile. But with high-value goods and the problems of cash flow, that is not always easy. Restaurants may have to work rather longer hours to receive their food."

No doubt a plan will be put in place, but at what cost?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Pissing In The Wind

The Olympics minister, Hugh Robertson, has engaged in the futile activity of pissing in the wind by urging the executives of the Olympic Delivery Authority to exercise some restraint wrt their pay and bonus packages.

It was revealed this month, for example, that ODA chief executive David Higgins is Britain's highest paid quango chief, on £384K last year. In fact, 9 ODA executives earn more than the Prime Minister's annual salary of £142,500.

Mr Robertson has suggested that ODA executives could make a gesture of deferring their bonuses until after the Games in 2012.

Fat chance!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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"Modest"

Figures recently released by the Government show that the nine senior executives at the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) are paid more than David Cameron's annual salary of £142,500.

However, Sir Craig Reedie, the architect of London's bid to host the Games and now a member of the International Olympic Committee's Executive Board, has told insidethegames:

"I think the professionalism that has been shown by the people at the top ODA is outstanding and in world competitive terms, the remuneration is modest."

So that's alright then!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Money Matters

The Guardian reported last week that David Higgins, the chief executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority, earns between £390,000 and £394,999 a year. One of the 15 people working on the games who are paid more than David Cameron's £142,500.

Howard Shiplee, the director of construction, receives between £285,000 and £289,999. Godric Smith, its head of communications, gets nearly £200,000. In 2008, Higgins also received a £205,000 bonus.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Failed

In April I noted that the lofty plans by the ODA to use the canal system to supply raw materials for the Olympics site were unsustainable.

"..the financial downturn has scuppered the plans to carry out the necessary dredging work. Therefore the tide is only high enough to carry barges for a few hours each day..."

Today The Times reports that the plans have "failed".

By the way, it cost us £20M.

How many more Olympic promises will fail?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Piss and Wind

As with all plans of mice, men and the ODA things do rather tend to fall apart when confronted with reality.

Such fate befell the grandiose plans of the ODA to construct a 120M wind turbine at the North end of the Olympic park, which was meant to supply 20% of the Olympic park's energy during the games.

David Higgins, CEO of the Olympic Delivery Authority, confessed to defeat the other day stating that the scheme was "no longer feasible".

Seemingly new health and safety measures had meant the original design was no longer viable, and the preferred bidder had pulled out.

No other contractors had come forward.

Another Olympic dream bites the dust!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Money Well Spent

Despite the Olympics "budget" running out of control (currently standing at £12BN including £2BN running costs), the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has paid Pringle Brandon £5K per annum (for the last 4years) for advice on how to divide up open-plan workspaces, and where it would be best to put desks.

Great!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Jobs For All!

One of the benefits of the London 2012 Olympics, so we were told, was that it was meant to provide jobs in the less wealthy part of London where the games are to be staged.

Taken literally, that is true. However, the actualite is not quite so inspiring.

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has revealed that 828 workers out of the total 6,277 workers on the Olympic site are Britons who live locally.

This revelation did not come voluntarily, but was made as a result of a Freedom of Information request (made 6 months ago).

Was it not Gordon Brown who promised that the Olympics would deliver "British jobs for British workers"?

A fatuous and divisive promise, the globalisation of the economy and the fact that we belong to the EU means that large projects such as this will always attract migrant labour (just as British workers go abroad for similar projects).

The foolishness was making the promise in the first place.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Unsustainable

The Telegraph reports that two years ago Aggregate Industries was awarded the contract to supply aggregate materials (eg concrete, gravel, stone and sand) to the Olympic Park. A key element, so people were given to understand at the time, of the contract was that 99% of the materials would be transported by sustainable transport methods. Within this figure, 25% (250,000 tons) would come by barge via Prescott Lock on the River Lea.

However, Tessa Jowell, the Olympics minister, has revealed that during 2009 a pathetic 600 tons of material had been transported to the Olympic Park by water.

For why?

It seems that the financial downturn has scuppered the plans to carry out the necessary dredging work. Therefore the tide is only high enough to carry barges for a few hours each day.

However, Aggregate Industries will not face sanctions, it seems that the ODA did not make it a binding requirement of the contract (even though it was a key part of the contract).

I wonder how many other Olympics contracts have been so "naively" negotiated by the ODA?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Months of Olympic Chaos

It seems that mere mortals in Woolwich, not lucky enough to be granted special travel lanes/travel arrangements for the Olympics, will be suffering some considerable travel inconvenience during (and indeed in the 9 months preceding) the London Olympics.

The Olympics Delivery Authority (ODA) will be closing roads around the 2012 shooting venue, up to nine months before the event. Ha Ha Road, Repository Road and Circular Way will be closed before and during the Games.

The ODA planning application also shows that sports fields will be closed, and an unspecified number of trees felled.

I am sure that the residents of Woolwich will bear their inconvenience with fortitude!

After all the Olympics is such a "worthy, well supported and popular cause", isn't it?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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The £160M Black Hole

In June I noted that:

"a £100M black hole has appeared, as if by magic, in the 2012 Olympics accounts of the London Development Agency (LDA) - the budget for which is not included in the £12BN Olympics budget".

Unfortunately, it seems that the size of this black hole has increased by over 50%.

The Times has obtained the unpublished report by KPMG into the black hole, which states that the black hole has expanded to £160M.

Unsurprisingly the report, according to The Times, "hints at a cover-up by officials who waited more than a year before alerting senior managers to cost overruns".

A £1.4BN compensation deal was agreed with businesses who were forcibly removed from the Olympics site. However, approximately 70 firms have yet to receive their money.

Seemingly the LDA has not set aside enough to settle the outstanding claims.

KPMG noted that staff in the Olympic Legacy Directorate, the department in charge of the scheme, should have been aware of spiralling costs as early as April 2008.

Neither the person overseeing the budget nor his finance manager were qualified accountants. A remarkably inept arrangement, even by the standards of the Labour government and the London Labour administration (under Ken Livingstone) at the time.

The report states:

"The basic requirements for managing and accounting for a budget were not met. None of the senior officers of the LDA to whom we spoke accepted responsibility for checking the accuracy of the accounting information."

It would seem that those "in charge" of the Olympic finances couldn't "run a piss up in brewery", and then did their best to try to hide their failings. Hardly surprising that the budget for this Labour "ego fest" has ballooned from £3BN to £12BN (including £2BN running costs).

BTW, isn't funny how those "in charge" conveniently forget to add on the £2BN running costs whenever they talk about the costs?

For why?

They are trying to keep the headline figure reported in the media below the psychological break point of £10BN.

Unfortunately for the politicians, they will learn that the trouble with black holes is that they just keep growing.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Kickbacks?

Lord laird has set the cat among the Olympic pigeons by questioning the integrity of charter deals for a fleet of boats intended to be used for corporate entertainment, media, accommodation and other purposes for the London 2012 Olympics.

Lord Laird has asked the Government to investigate whether Olympic officials were offered or requested "financial and other inducements, including vacations, periods of stay or trips on sea-going vessels for individuals and their family members".

Lord Laird named two British boat-charter companies (Top Sail Events and Charters Ltd) and has asked whether directors or staff members working for the Olympic Delivery Authority, the London 2012 Organising Committee (Locog), the Olympic board and the British Olympic Association had received or asked for on-board hospitality.

I wonder what has prompted Lord Laird's question?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Dirty Blog

It seems that the Leabank Square Residents' Association (who reside in the shadow of the London Olympic construction site) have fallen foul of the Olympic Development Authority (ODA), in a dispute over comments made on the residents' blogsite.

The blog had accused senior officials of lying about their efforts to reduce noise and air pollution at the development.

The ODA then threatened court action if "libellous" comments were not removed from the site, they noted that some of the comments were "personal and threatening" to an individual.

The contentious posts have been removed.

However, the residents still want the dust removed as they believe the ODA promised they would do but claim is not happening.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Snouts In The Trough

How reassuring to see that, despite the current recession and a budget that is out of control, those tasked with keeping the costs of the London Olympics 2012 under control are making sure that they are personally not in danger of facing any undue financial hardship.

CLM, a consortium of surveyors overseeing the Olympic construction project, received £151M last year (double what had been previously paid).

On top of this largess to the consultants, Olympic bosses found the time and the funds to award themselves some very generous pay rises.

Staff at the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) took home £30M, including £2M of bonuses. David Higgins, CEO, received took home £537K (generously deferring half of his £201K bonus until 2012).

Howard Shiplee, director of construction, claimed £19,343 in expenses, including £11,478 on hotels and nearly £2,280 on taxis.

It is reassuring to know that those who are running this "venture" on behalf of the taxpayer, really know and understand the true value of money.

Our money safe in their hands!

Yes?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Regeneration?

Figures provided by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) show that of the 4,101 workers employed in constructing the Olympic Park, approximately 20% are from the five local boroughs.

Within the 20%, only 115 were formerly unemployed in Greenwich, Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets or Waltham Forest.

The cost of the Olympic Park is currently estimated to be £1.1BN.

Not much of a legacy for the local community!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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