The November 2011 Olympic Quarterly Economic Report, announced yesterday by Sport and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, showed that the security budget for the Games had risen from £282 million ($441 million/€328 million) to a huge £553 million ($866 million/€643 million), an increase of £271 million ($424 million/€315 million).

Robertson made it clear that more than £500 million ($783 million/€581 million) of unallocated contingency is still available for the project but while the NAO said the Olympic Park is likely to be completed on time and on budget, current projections show that almost all the £9.3 billion funding is likely to be required, with little margin for any further unforeseen costs emerging in the final eight months.

"The programme to deliver the venues and infrastructure for the 2012 Games remains on course, so it looks as if value for money will be achieved in this area," said Amyas Morse, the head of the NAO.

"However, not everything is rosy.

"The Government is confident that there is money available to meet known risks, but, in my view, the likelihood that the Games can still be funded within the existing £9.3 billion public sector funding package is so finely balanced that there is a real risk more money will be needed.

"Moreover, important issues relating to the cost and staffing of venue security and restrictions on transport in London are still unresolved."

But despite the claims, Robertson said he had faith the financial targets would be met within the budget.

"Clearly any big infrastructure project is always going to be quite finely balanced but, as at today, we will be 95 per cent complete in terms of bill by Christmas and we still have half a billion pounds left in the contingency to cover all known risks," he said.

"So I'm as confident as I can be as the Minister that we're going to deliver on time and within budget."

The NAO also raised its concern that the Olympic Delivery Authority's (ODA) transport plan for the Games was behind schedule.

It said the 109 miles of London roads being used for the Olympic Route Network (ORN) had still not been integrated with local transport plans and that until the arrangements have been finalised, London 2012 and Transport for London will not be able to inform the public and businesses of the likely impact of the Games on the road network.

"The experience of spectators, visitors and Londoners in general would be diminished and the reputation of the Games put at risk if these issues were not sorted out," said Morse.

The NAO added that the need to find so many additional guards represented a "significant recruitment challenge" and the Home Office was now in discussion with the Ministry of Defence about using military personnel.

The Government said an estimated 23,700 security staff would be needed during the 2012 Games, which was more than double the initial estimate of 10,000 security personnel for venues, but Robertson refused to condemn the original security plans despite them being well wide of the mark.

"When I started being Minister there was no Arab Spring," he said.

"No one really knows whether that's going to have a beneficial or adverse effect on our security."

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