Be absolutely honest, are you that excited about the Commonwealth Games?
Whether it's next year's affair in India or the 2014 event in Glasgow, is it really a sporting spectacle given the relatively small slice of countries that take part? I remember attending the Manchester games back in 2002 and although I enjoyed experiencing something like that for the first time, I have to admit to being somewhat underwhelmed.
Today Salmond and Purcell will announce that they are plugging an £80m gap in the financing of the 2014 Games and one can't help but worry that there will be more similar press conferences over the next four years to come. Has cash-strapped Scotland bitten off more than it can chew? I hope not and I doubt it but I look to the quadrupling of the 2012 Olympics budget and one can't help but be concerned. (Also, if £80m can be drummed up so quickly for the Games, it does beg the question why it was not available for the Glasgow Airport Rail Link? Is the money going in now? Are frontline services being cut? etc etc)
This £80m gap has been caused by the lack of lucrative tv deals as a consequence of the recession so needless to say there is a further cost in that the event won't be as prestigious as it once was if not as many people are watching it.
However, Glasgow is seemingly far ahead of schedule with 70% of venues for the Games already in place, scope for more cost overruns is therefore narrow. In terms of expected revenue, most ticket sales for the Edinburgh Festival are sold to tourists and if the same is pulled off for Glasgow then sceptical onlookers such as myself will be insignificant to the whole process.
Furthermore, despite my experiences of the Manchester Games, the local Evening News paper had this to say:
The legacy of Manchester's Commonwealth Games included 20,000 jobs, the acceleration of £800m of transport spending, £225m of public-sector regeneration, and world-class sporting facilities. As reflected in this briefing note for Scottish politicians.
If Glasgow produces similar figures it should be very happy indeed.
So it looks like plugging those spending gaps will more than pay off in the end.
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5 comments:
I wonder if Purcell will claim this extra money is anti Glasgow. This should bring th GARL debate to an end as how could that be afforded if extra money has to be foudn for this.
I was just thinking that Anonymous. £80 million would probably just about cover the re-locating of infrastructure at Glasgow Airport so can we expect the Council to say no use the cash for that instead?
I think not!
It was decent of the First Minister to delay the annoucement until after the by-election, given that labour made a big thing of how the SNP were anti-Glasgow because of GARL.
Sometimes the rest of us get a bit fed up with all the money that the government is pouring into Glasgow!
Worrying stats - there are more herion addicts in Glasgow North East than Tory voters.
Good point Tris, it must have been tempting to bring this announcement forward. I guess there could have been more to lose if they had done so with accusations of trying to affect the by-election. Still tempting nonetheless...
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