LONDON -- British police plan to use unarmed police,
existing security and wide experience in counterterrorism if London
is awarded the 2012 Olympics.
Ian Blair, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, said Friday
he told the International Olympic Committee's evaluation commission
that Britain's minimalist, discreet approach to policing was a
powerful part of London's bid.
"I think the Met's unique combination of experience and doing
it in a nonthreatening and noninvasive way is a very important
point," Blair said.
Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid are the other contenders,
with the IOC to decide on July 6 in Singapore.
Blair said venue security was estimated to cost $38.4 million.
All other security would fall under the $320 million budget
contained within the $3.8 billion overall funding package, with the
British government picking up any unforeseen extra costs.
Fifteen thousand officers would be on duty at any one time
during a London Games -- 10 percent of Britain's police force -- and
would be backed by 6,000 security officers and 10,000 volunteers.
"We have designed the security in from the beginning, which is
why you don't need 80,000 personnel to secure it," said Blair,
comparing London's planned security force to the number used in
Athens.
Earlier, Prime Minister Tony Blair and his political rivals,
Conservative leader Michael Howard and Liberal Democrats leader
Charles Kennedy, met with the IOC commission at No. 10 Downing
Street Friday afternoon. They then went to Buckingham Palace for a
reception hosted by Queen Elizabeth II. Meanwhile, the Prime
Minister's wife, Cherie Blair, spoke at a legal presentation.
Bid officials also promised fairly priced tickets and projected
a $160 million surplus. They plan to offer 8 million tickets for
public sale, and expected 82 percent to be sold. Marketing director
David Magliano said prices would start at $24, with an average
price of $64.
The most expensive ticket will be $1,600 for the opening
ceremony.
The operational budget for a London Olympic Games Organizing
Committee would be $2.5 billion. London 2012 finance director Neil
Wood said the $3.8 billion overall funding package also included
venue construction, Olympic transport infrastructure, security,
inflation and contingencies.
"We have no expectation whatsoever that this will go over
budget," Wood said.