Features

It's called LONDON 2012 for a reason, not Britain 2012.

Stephen Ash, Cardiff

I live in East London, which has been neglected and under-developed for years. I was in Australia when the Olympics came to Australia and it was a huge boost, and think the Olympics will be of great benefit to my area.

Jermyn, Stoke Newington, London

It's unfair to expect people to pay for this when the cost of living is already stretching our budgets beyond what most can afford. I wish Paris had won. It will be foreign workers not local people who benefit from the new jobs they say will be created, as that is already happening.

People will be ripped off even more than they already are in this country. London does not need even more people coming here as we are already squashed together like rats on public transport.

Diver Tom Daley - South West winner.

Victoria Cheston, London

To me it is a lifetime opportunity to enjoy the BIGGEST Global peacetime celebration - a celebration to treasure, and I'm proud it has come to the UK. Of course with the millions of Global visitors to the UK, the spin off will be enormous. Shame the residents of the UK are such whingy couch potatoes...!

Graham C, Fleet, Hampshire

No benefit? Worse than that, the Olympics are a curse for arts organisations up and down the country, with Arts Council funding being raided to support the games. Two major regional theatres and countless smaller projects have been affected in the west country alone.

I'd love to tell the sportspeople to "go jump" for the money, but of course, that is exactly what they're doing...

Dan Cook, Bristol

Promote long term businesses would be a better use of money.

Mr Dingle

As usual London is the centre of the Universe. Money will be wasted on the Shooting Facilities which will be demolished after the games are over. Situation normal!

There still seems to be the attitude that north of the Watford Gap nothing exists!!!

Ron Harrison, Redditch

Pointless, don't know anyone who wouldn't rather the money be spent on something else... Very High Speed London Glasgow Edinburgh rail link, for instance. Don't know anyone who wants the Olympics!

Ian Hobbs

Once again only London will benefit financially and from an infrastructure perspective. I do think sport will benefit particularly minority sports in which we do very well. What does worry me is that it may be used as an excuse to put all sorts of restrictions on people in the name of 'fighting terrorism'.

Roger Grimes, Gloucester

If we as tax payers are paying for these Games to be held in London, are we going to get concessions in ticketing or we going to have to pay the usual tournament ticket touting prices?

London Olympics 1948.

Francois Yoofoo, London

A complete and utter waste of tax payers money for something, that yet again will benefit London.

Kevin, Salisbury

Pay out £9 billion and get £6 billion back in business? The maths say it all.

The full cost of putting on the Games should fall on the London area alone and not lottery grants should be made.

Steve, Swansea

It is going to be the usual effect, London benefits, the rest of the country miss out. At the end of the day this government is only concerned about putting these kind of events into London, forget the rest of the country.

Perfect example of this, the New Wembley. How many people find this easy and accessible?

Why is it that the government can't see further than the M25 for major international sporting events and venues?

One argument of course is that all of the countries alleged major tourist attractions and business seems to be based there, but if you don't build these stadia anywhere else in the country how on earth are other areas supposed to gain the economic benefits?

Tourism in other areas rely purely on history, Stratford Upon Avon= Shakespeare, Lakes=Wordsworth, not new, internationally renowned buildings. The government even manage to ignore Birmingham with its central location, excellent communication networks. Mmmmm!

Anywhere but London truly benefiting from the Games? I severely doubt it.

Jonathan Cole, Preston

The main winners are all the ex-athletes who will earn money for all kinds of corporate, media and consulting fees. No wonder they celebrated so wildly when we were awarded the games.

Sean, London

London is the most parochial place in the UK (the world?) so it comes as no surprise that when London decides to throw a party, it thinks everyone else should pay for it and be grateful.

Londoners have above average amounts of money spent on them by the government, and we all pay extra for any business that decides to locate there (London weighting anyone?).

Tessa Jowell should just admit what everyone clearly knows already. After all, we're paying her wages: the least we could expect is some honesty.

Arthur, Edinburgh

Simply stating the regions will benefit from London 2012 is no guarantee that anything material will change in the regions after the Olympics. The cost of attending the Olympics for people on small pensions living in the regions is enough to guarantee that I will not be able to attend this once in a lifetime celebration.

I see no reason to believe that London and the South East will again get the Lions share of any benefits and give them another reason to gloat over the gulf between those who have in the South East and those who don't in the regions. The are too many marginal Parliamentary seats so their wish will always prevail.

Ian Wright, Chesterfield

The sad thing is that even LOCOG are now denying responsibility to deliver a health legacy from the Games, when this originally one of the ket "selling" points in the 2012 bid to the IOC

Dr Leon Creaney, London

A complete waste of time and money. lf there is cash for sport it should have been spent nationally on sports and cultural provision.

John B, Leeds

There are other benefits to holding the games which are intangible. Britain is such a multicultural society fragmented by many different ethnic groups, London holding the Olympics may bring people together and form a national identity as it did with the Sydney Games.

In 2000, the residents of Sydney felt hosting the Olympics encouraged community spirit and ethnic groups felt part of the national identity. The games can also boost civic pride in a city as the whole globe is watching which gives residents a feeling of pride and belonging. These are positives that money can't buy.

Nicky St Clair, Glasgow

Am watching the programme at the moment but whilst it has reported on the cost, it has been strangely silent on the fact that Londoners are having to pay extra through their Council Tax for hosting 2012, this additional charge will be continuing till 2016.

I live in SW London border with Surrey and am extremely sceptical as to what benefit I will get. My borough will not see any improvement in terms of facilities or infrastructure because we are too far away from the East part where all the action will be happening, so I see no visible payback yet still having to contribute EXACTLY the same amount as residents living on the doorstep. They're the ones who will enjoy the new stadia etc, not the whole of London.

Alice Lee

Tessa Jowell says the whole country will benefit from the Olympics. If this is so why isn't the whole country paying for it, instead of charging Londoners higher council tax?

Tessa Jowell - under fire.

As a South London pensioner I would like to know how I am going to benefit, also where in South London are any Olympic events going to be held? We have seen the cost escalate out of control like all government projects. Why is Crystal Palace not being included to host any events? As usual the government have put our money on a dead duck.

As for getting people to take up sport when did we last see a politician play any kind of sport which involves breaking a sweat? suppose Mr Prescott did wield a croquet mallet... but Brown is too busy playing at saving the world to do anything else...

Sparks

As a wheelchair user due to my medical condition, I find that government is forgetting those of us wheelchair users who would love to get into disability sport. But I can't access this because it is over the other side of the county.

I do get my exercise from using my wheelchair, some of the times I have got away with using the cycle tracks, but half of them are not on the flat, so I loose a considerable amount of weight by huffing getting up steep hills. We are not all lazy, thank you, because my legs don't work, due having a genetic defect, which I can't control. I would love to access a pool that has fully accessible premises - not easy when they can't provide a hoist for me.

David Rolph, Frinton on Sea, Essex

London can keep it. But I have to pay for something that I have absolutely NO interest in. So much money is being poured into the bottomless pit of these games and everything else is being ignored.

I really wish Paris had won the games. London people will benefit and no other part of the UK will. I don't care what... Tessa Jowell says.

Anon, Gateshead

I think the Olympics is great and getting the chance to host it is fantastic but it has come at too higher cost to the country and will only benefit a small amount of people. It has also impacted massively on other artistic areas removing what little funding there was in the first place.

Local theatres are closing all over the country due to lack of funding with the money going into the Olympics. People's livelihoods have been ruined and local communities now have very little to celebrate in the way of the arts. The main issue for me is that I see no reason why it should cost so much to stage the games and had I been aware of the cost when bidding, I would not have supported it.

Sam, Derby

Yet again, the sport that produced the most medals in the last Commonwealth Games is going to be the loser in facilities legacy. Why does shooting always get sidelined?

B. Bain, Easingwold, North Yorkshire