This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21095725
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 1 | Version 2 |
---|---|
Government bought 8,600 Games tickets | Government bought 8,600 Games tickets |
(about 4 hours later) | |
The government has confirmed it bought more than 8,600 tickets at a cost of nearly £1.2m for the London Olympics. | |
About 4,000 tickets, costing £916,000, were paid for by central government, with the rest - worth about £300,000 - bought by staff or London councils. | About 4,000 tickets, costing £916,000, were paid for by central government, with the rest - worth about £300,000 - bought by staff or London councils. |
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it wanted to maximise the economic boost from the Games. | The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it wanted to maximise the economic boost from the Games. |
In November 2011 the department revealed it had bought just over 8,800 tickets at a cost of nearly £750,000. | |
At the time the Department for Culture, Media and Sport was understood to have put in bids for the entire government with the allocation to be shared across departments. | |
Costliest ticket | Costliest ticket |
Latest figures show ministers used 60 tickets, the most expensive a £725 seat at the athletics. | |
While former Treasury minister Lord Sassoon used the costliest ticket, Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt received the most tickets totalling £605 and watched two cycling events, diving, football and gymnastics. | |
Of the remaining tickets 2,381 were bought by staff who had worked long-term on the games or Ambassadors. | |
A spokeswoman from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport told BBC News they would not go into details about why one particular minister was given tickets to a particular event or why the amount of money spent on tickets had gone up since November 2011. | |
"We were clear that we wanted to make the most of hosting the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics as a driver for growth, and decided that it was right to invest in order to maximise the economic benefits for the country," she added. | |
"The government paid-for tickets were used to invite and accompany a number of international and domestic political and business leaders, as well as guests with a close connection to the Games and its legacy. | |
"All invitations were issued against the following criteria: encouraging growth, encouraging health and sports participation, encouraging community engagement and volunteering." | |
The National Audit Office said 11 million tickets were sold to the London 2012 Games. | The National Audit Office said 11 million tickets were sold to the London 2012 Games. |
More than seven million people visited Olympic venues during the games with 2.5 million people visiting the Olympic Park. | More than seven million people visited Olympic venues during the games with 2.5 million people visiting the Olympic Park. |