£150 million Olympics security bungle: thousands more guards needed

Security bungle: games organisers will hire 10,000 more guards
12 April 2012

Olympic organisers have been forced to double the number of security guards to protect the London Games in a blunder that leaves taxpayers facing an extra £150 million bill.

A document obtained by the Standard reveals that "20,000+" guards are now needed next year - twice as many as the previous estimate.

The scale of the increase will raise questions about the performance of senior managers at Locog, the organising committee, and has caused deep anger in Whitehall.

It takes the total cost for civilian security guards at venues to £432 million -nearly 15 times the £29 million figure in London's original Olympic bid. A Whitehall official said: "There is a lot of annoyance and frustration about how
Locog's plans could be so far adrift."

The huge increase in the number of guards will prompt concerns about whether enough security-cleared staff can be found in time. It fuels speculation that the Army might have to be called in to fill the gap.

The guards hired by Locog will man scanners around the Games venues and will carry out airport-style security searches.

Games chiefs officially refused to comment on numbers. But sources denied any failings and insisted any changes were the result of altered security requirements imposed by the Government.

The Whitehall document obtained by the Standard warns that ministers are now planning to deploy a team of senior civil servants to help Games organisers improve their security planning and sets out the scale of the problem that has been uncovered.

"There are significant issues regarding Locog's ability to forecast their requirement for security guards," the document states. "Last year the Government provided £282 million to help Locog deliver their venue security programme.

"This was based on Locog's assessment that they would need a guard force of 10,000 personnel. Locog have reassessed their position subsequently and now anticipate that they will need substantially more. Some recent estimates suggest 20,000+ at peak."

Although Locog is a private company, the document says taxpayers are likely to be liable for the extra cost.

It adds: "Locog's new assessment of their guarding requirement would place a further burden on Government of £100 million-£150 million."

The organising committee announced this year that it had hired the security firm G4S to provide the guards needed for the Games.

But the document warns that London 2012 organisers are "facing some challenges in their wider management of this contract" which "have led to some of the above problems" in working out how many guards will be needed.

It says that the "Government Olympic Executive" within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is now preparing to respond "through the provision of seven or eight senior staff" to "support project management and contract management activity".

The bill for guards is on top of the separate Home Office security budget of £475 million for policing the Games. A further £125 million reserve fund is also available to the Home Office under spending plans announced last year.

It means that the total potential spending on security for the Games is now likely to exceed £900 million and could top £1 billion if the bill rises further.

Locog said: "Locog has worked in close collaboration with all security agencies across government on a day to day basis.

"Government has been involved in our planning, have validated our guarding approach, provided the standards we have applied and approved expenditure."

Locog chief executive Paul Deighton was paid £480,000 last year, while other executives received substantial performance bonuses on top of their six-figure salaries.

A Home Office spokeswoman said today: "We are committed to delivering a safe and secure Games which includes robust security of venues delivered by the right people with the right skills."

"Government, Locog and G4S are working together to finalise the requirements for Olympic venue security. As is common with all major sporting events, we will make the best and most appropriate use of all available resources."

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