MPs: Games chiefs have spent money like water

MPs said they showed a "risible approach to cost control" by allowing the cost of the 2012 aquatics centre to quadruple to £303million.

The Commons culture, media and sport committee also raised serious concerns about the lack of detailed proposals for the Games legacy.

It comes after the public accounts committee accused Olympics chiefs of misleading the public over the Games budget, which has tripled to £9.3billion since the successful bid.

In today's report, MPs pinpointed the rising cost of venues within the Olympic Park as a key factor. They noted the cost of the main stadium and the velodrome had risen, but identified the aquatics centre as chief culprit.

Originally priced at £73 million, the wave-shaped pool complex designed by Zaha Hadid is now costed at £303million, including the cost of an adjacent bridge.

The report said: "(It) might be spectacular and eyecatching but it appears to be overdesigned and it will be an expensive way of providing the facilities for water sports needed during and after the Games.

"The history of the aquatics centre shows a risible approach to cost control and that the Games organisers appear to be willing to spend money like water."

The MPs said there was a risk of " significant" extra costs for converting venues after the Games because they were being designed before a legacy operator or owner has been confirmed.

There was also a lack of published detail about the legacy, particularly in terms of sport and the benefits for Olympic boroughs. The London Development Agency, as owner of the 500-acre Olympic Park in Stratford, is yet to say how it will deliver jobs and affordable housing.

MPs warned that after 2012 there would be considerable pressure to maximise revenues from land sales at the expense of pledges on employment, affordable housing and the environment, and these pressures had to be resisted.

They expressed concern at plans to reimburse the Lottery with receipts from land sales, warning that forecast revenue of £1.8billion could prove unrealistic amid falling property values. They urged that payments should be made inflation-proof because the Lottery might not be reimbursed until 2030.

The committee questioned the £2.7billion official figure given for the Olympic budget contingency fund. It pointed out that each individual project also has its own contingency fund. Adding these to the headline figure would lead to a total of £3.72billion, MPs said.

They added that amid a "bewildering" number of Olympics-themed initiatives to promote sport, a government strategy to boost nationwide participation was long overdue.