Olympic venue cost rises £100m in 8 months

The cost of London's Olympic venues has risen by £100 million since November 2007, the Mayor of London's Olympic watchdog has made public.

The cost of London's Olympic venues has risen by £100 million since November 2007, the Mayor of London's Olympic watchdog has made public.

The Olympic stadium itself, for instance, has risen to a new cost of £525 million; an increase of £29 million from the original estimate.

However the watchdog, headed by Carphone Warehouse founder David Ross, has explained that the overall cost for the Olympic budget as a whole has only risen by £16 million, it has been reported.

"Significant additional public sector funding is likely to be required to deliver the project," a statement from the watchdog said.

Mr Ross has been working on the report since last month, after Boris Johnson appointed him to review the costs.

The report also details concerns over whether or not the 'legacy' promised by Lord Coe of a sporting London will be a reality with the money currently available to the developers of the Olympics.

As such, Capita Symonds has been appointed by the London Development Agency to review the issue.

What's more, Mr Ross hinted that the £1 billion spare cash made available for unforeseen costs in the development of the Olympics may now be insufficient.

"If you imagine a perfect storm scenario where the price of raw materials continues to go up as China grows, the UK housing market continues to slip and global terror means security has to be beefed up, £1 billion isn't enough remaining contingency," Mr Ross said.