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Government conceals costs of Olympic Games

19 March 2012

Government conceals costs of Olympic Games

SP Member of Parliament Renske Leijten is demanding clarification from the government regarding critical reports on the costs of organising the Olympic Games. According to Leijten the government has failed to provide Parliament with complete information on the projected costs of the event and the results of some relevant enquiries have not been sent to legislators. Leijten’s fear is that it is the most critical results which have disappeared into the far recesses of the ministry’s files. The Netherlands has bid for the Games to be held in Amsterdam in 2028, the centennial of the first Olympics to take place there.

Data supplied by broadcasting service RTL News show that the development costs for the Olympic Games would amount to €8 billion, a great deal more than was previously thought. It appears that Edith Schippers, Minister for Public Health, Welfare and Sport attempted to prevent the report containing the revised calculation from being made public. At the same time a separate report from the Central Planning Bureau, a state agency, was not sent to Parliament.

Renske Leijten“It looks like the Minister decided not to transmit a number of critical reports to Parliament,” says Leijten, “Was that a mistake or a deliberate way of holding back displeasing information? If the latter is the case then the Minister has a big problem. At a time when billions are being cut from state expenditure the Dutch people and their representatives in Parliament have a right to all the information necessary for them to take a decision over the Olympic Games.”
Leijten intends this week to cross-examine the Minister on this question.

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