Boris Johnson was under fire today after it emerged that more than £3 million has been spent on giant Olympic rings to decorate parts of London during the Games.
Among the decorations are hanging, fold-away rings for Tower Bridge and rings for a barge on the Thames next to the London Eye. Labour Assembly member John Biggs attacked the move, calling it an "extravagant waste of public money".
The rings on Tower Bridge have caused the most controversy because it allowed a lucrative sponsorship deal to be struck with energy companies EDF and GE.
The fold-up rings enable the bridge to open fully and will also allow the sponsors to advertise on the bridge, because their logos will not be projected at the same time as the Olympic logo.
The process will be repeated for the Paralympics.
EDF and GE are making no financial contribution to the rings but they are paying for upgrading the bridge's lighting system, which will be completed in time for the Queen's jubilee.
A spokesman for the Mayor said: "These spectacular displays are funded from a specific Olympic budget, agreed by the previous Mayor... They are a part of fulfilling obligations set out in the Host City Contract."
