Supplementary memorandum submitted by
the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)
We briefed the Committee in January on a number
of confidential financing issues and suggest that we build on
this by arranging a series of private briefings, at approximately
quarterly intervals.
These briefings would cover the following issues:
— updates on ODA cashflow figures (Q
477);
— progress of negotiations on private
investment in the Olympic Park (Q 480);
— progress of discussions on legacy
use of temporary or relocatable venues (Q 484); and
— any other current relevant issues,
which the Committeee may find useful.
Many of these issues are, as the Committee recognises,
commercially sensitive and will need to be treated in confidence.
If you agree with this approach, we will contact you direct to
agree some suitable dates and a location.
We will write to the Committee separately on
the progress of negotiations on use of the community brand, and
contributions by Games sponsors to community programmes (Q 488).
The Committee also requested further information
on two specific funding questions. We can confirm that Jeremy
Beeton's answer to Q 461 on contingency tier approvals is consistent
with the written statement on 12 November 2007 at column 67W,
which stated that "contingency funding will only be called
upon where it is absolutely necessary, as agreed by the Ministerial
Funders' Group". This is because the decision to permit the
allocation of £968 million of programme contingency to be
determined by the Government Olympic Executive was a decision
of the Funders' Group and because the Funders' Group have also
determined the rules by which this funding will be allocated.
The DCMS Permanent Secretary, Jonathan Stephens,
has written to the Committee separately in answer to Q469 with
a full explanation of contingency costs. On the Committee's specific
question, each project budget contains contingency provision to
cover project specific risks. At individual project budget level,
as project provisions are likely to be fully required they are
considered an intrinsic element of the base budget of a project
and for this reason are not being separately identified.
February 2008
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