Diane warns locals still not seeing Olympic benefits
27 Jul 2010
Labour leadership candidate Diane Abbott MP has continued her fight to provide more opportunities for unemployed local people on the Olympic site. With the Games now just two-years away, organisers are facing criticism for the severe lack of apprenticeships awarded to unemployed local people from Olympic host boroughs, including Hackney.
Following a visit to the Olympic site last month, Diane was shocked to discover that of 150 apprentices working on the site, only one was from Hackney. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) had promised to up the number of apprentices working on the site in the following months and have done, with a reported 250 working on the Olympic site and a further 3000 in the Olympic village.
However, Diane believes that more can be done, and has called on the ODA not to lose sight of the regeneration aspect of the Olympic project.
“With the Olympics now only two years away, I have no words to describe how excited I am to see such an amazing event at my very doorstep. Millions of people from across the globe will travel to London for a summer to see the best athletes on the planet compete in one of the largest sporting events in the world. The Games are also expected to add billions of pounds to the UK economy, leaving a legacy of sports projects and facilities, world class stadia, shops and new housing to benefit the whole of London and more.
“However, the ‘regeneration games’ must without fail succeed in leaving a lasting and meaningful legacy to be of any worth whatsoever. At the moment there are 250 apprentices working at the Olympic park, 20% of which are from the five host boroughs. Despite this improvement, I am certain that the ODA can do much more to utilise the vast talent lying dormant within the five host boroughs, particularly Hackney”.
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