Some MPs have a particularly direct interest, not least those whose constituencies stretch across the main venues and the Olympic Park. Their constituents will see some of the greatest benefits, but also some of the most disruption up to the Games – so it’s important that they know everything that's going on across the five Host Boroughs – Greenwich, Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.
So we took Seb Coe from LOCOG and David Higgins from the ODA to spend 90 minutes with local MPs Clive Efford, Diane Abbott, Iain Duncan Smith and Nick Raynsford to run through current activity and take questions on all sorts of areas. Considering the current economic climate, it's no surprise that their number one area of interest was jobs and skills, where we were able to run through the latest numbers of borough residents employed on site and the ODA's plans for apprenticeships.
We also took their questions on LOCOG sponsorship success, the future of the Olympic Stadium, social housing in the Olympic Village, and there was a clear consensus on the need for everyone to focus on sports participation in schools and colleges. Thinking about the huge progress already being made in east London, there was a tangible feeling at the event that everyone couldn’t wait until 2012. The impact of the Games will be huge.
