London 2012 blog

I have just come back from a trip to Scotland where I was banging the drum for London 2012 and encouraging Scottish companies to compete for work. London 2012 is for the whole of the UK and we want to help companies in Scotland make the most of the opportunities it creates.

On the first evening, Morag Stuart (Head of Procurement, ODA) and I had dinner in Edinburgh with Norman Quirk, Chairman of the Scottish Chamber of Commerce. The aim of this meeting was to identify how the Chamber of Commerce can get word around their 9,000 members about London 2012 business opportunities.

The following morning it was an early start as we visited The Scottish Parliament where we had a really productive meeting with Tavish Scott MSP, Convener of the Scottish Liberal Democrats. We also met with Jim Mather MSP, Minister for Business and Tourism.

From Edinburgh, we travelled to Perth for the Constructing Excellence conference at Perth Concert Hall. The event was jointly hosted by the ODA, Constructing Excellence, Scottish Enterprise and the Highlands and Islands Enterprise. Morag and I spoke to 150 delegates about the opportunities for businesses as we go into contract on the main venues such as the Olympic Stadium and the Aquatics Centre.
 
So far, five Scottish companies have already won contracts to work with us and more are already supplying our contractors. The electrical substation has been designed by NORD Architecture, a Glasgow-based practice that won the prestigious Young Architect of the Year Award in 2006. Dunfermline-based Mason Land Surveys have been working directly for the ODA, surveying the Olympic Park and Kilsyth-based company Ritches have been testing materials for one of the ODA’s contractors cleaning up the land. These are three great examples of Scottish companies already benefiting from the London 2012 Games and we hope more will do so in the future.

In the evening we hosted a dinner with Jack Perry, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise for 20 senior people who had been at the conference. It was a very successful evening and it was clear that with Scotland set to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, there’s a huge chance for Scottish businesses to benefit from these two world-class sporting events. Scotland has produced some great Olympians over the years – Allan Wells, David Wilkie and many, many more. I am sure it will have many winners from the London 2012 business race.