Will Self on the Olympics (Newsnight 26/07/11)

Will Self back on BBC Newsnight, cynical as ever as he tears into Tessa Jowell MP over the Olympic "legacy".

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• will
• self
• tessa
• jowell
• newsnight
• olympics
• london
• 2012

[MrDarkbloom]

Will Self is a legend

[nakedmambo]

Hosting the Olympics is clearly less to do with sport and more about getting people to go to London (or wherever) and buy shit. Jowell said it: retail is the most important sector in the economy, a consumption economy and this is why these circuses have to be staged. Financially it's bloody millstone and it's also a gamble, but with public money.

[Stevo6452]

Will Self is just bitter because he was always picked last for P.E. as a child...

[KongofPip]

"Welcome to Newsnight ladies, allow me to introduce you to your executioner."

[MrQuackingPlums]

@carlysdowner88 I agree with you totally but I think Toni Grey-Thompson seems alot more sincere and honest in her point of view....Anyway Will Self for PM!!!

[newalbion2012]

Why did this woman join the Labour Party? Please, please, please can we start making things again. This is what real stable economies and communities are made of. Not the creation of 1000s of shop jobs selling things mostly produced elsewhere in the world.

[MrRocknrolla4u]

The same money could have been spent better to actually redevelop east london properly with sustainable jobs, not some "academy to train the locals to work in shops. Why not have an academy to train them in worthwhile area's other than retail, or a training academy to support athletes in the UK! Or to invest in better ways to market UK products abroad to boost the economy?

[MrRocknrolla4u]

. Firstly to redevelop and regenerate the east end of London and two the boost the flagging economy, both very short term measure. The income it will create over the two weeks from foreign visitors, will not be in equal balance to the disruption caused to business with priority lanes and transport put in place for "VIP's" of the olympics, not to mention the cost of policing the venue.

[MrRocknrolla4u]

Booyakasha! Yeah you tell 'em Will, the actual truth is less than comfortable to live with. I think the government who seem only skill at one thing, miss spending valuable public money thought they would kill two birds with one stone. 

[TomMackio]

@TheTomtuffy Food and drink & accomodation won't scratch the surface of the costs alone, but there are so many other areas where revenue will be increased and indirect costs reduced. In Sydney, tourism revenue was up £6 billion in the year after the olympics compare with the year before. These are figures that will help the whole of Britain. You need to invest in sports, arts and architecture every so often to keep tourism high and our relative tourism revenue has been dropping for years!

[TheTomtuffy]

@TomMackio How much money from food and drink,accomodation etc? chicken feed a compared to the total cost,London will be making the run off profits and fuck the rest,"improve the lives of British people" how does Scotland profit?TomMackio is bang on with his comments.Even the building of the stadia has been done by 50% foreign workers,so much for local employment.Hallelujah,cant wait for the queens bunfight,another waste of money to look forward to.No wonder the Scots and Welsh want to go.

[TheTomtuffy]

Will Self telling it like it is.London based of course,nationally paid for yes,making money for the country no.Fuck the olympics two weeks of obscure sports that most of the country doesnt care about costing a fortune.All the facilities built will be well used after the olympics,no they wont they will be under used and cost even more to keep running.I bet Scotland cant wait for the event they will be making millions out of it,no they wont.