Debate Over Local Impact Of London Olympics
Cllr Jim McMahon at the One Future launch. (picture: Cllr Jim McMahon's blog)
There’s now less than a year to go until the 2012 Olympics open in London, and local politicians have been expressing differing views about the legacy of the Games in Saddleworth and Oldham.
Oldham Council leader Jim McMahon used his latest blogpost to hail the recently-launched One Future initiative, which aims to use the Olympics as a catalyst for boosting sport, tourism and the arts among many other things in Oldham borough. The council will be working with private sector companies to examine ways to achieve this.
He explained: “To many people the London Olympics can seem far away in both time and distance but it is not an exaggeration to say that this is a once in a generation opportunity and I believe that the partnership that is One Future will be of real benefit in securing opportunities from this legacy.”
Cllr McMahon continued: “At the launch that took place at Gallery Oldham I was fortunate to meet members of the One Future Steering Group from both the private and public sectors. I was impressed at seeing how many people are genuinely interested in improving opportunities for residents and making the borough a healthier and more creative place.”
An Oldham Council video about One Future can be viewed here. Cllr McMahon’s article, which also touches on the joint working talks with Rochdale Council, can be read here.
Saddleworth Runners youngsters using the Churchill Fields track.
But the Vice Chairman of Saddleworth Parish Council, Cllr Ken Hulme, has struck a more sceptical note. In a letter to Saddleworth News, he said it was “deeply ironic” that One Future was being launched while plans remain in place to remove the running track at Churchill Fields to improve drainage at the site.
He commented: “I thought an Olympic legacy for the borough might actually involve improving sporting facilities and encouraging greater participation in Olympic sports.”
Cllr Hulme went on: “But no, in the crazy world of Oldham Council destroying the one athletics track in our area, for the sole reason that it might bring them a grant from the Football Foundation if they replace an athletics track with more football pitches, seems to them a fitting legacy.”
Cllr Hulme concluded: “I know football is an Olympic sport, and I have tickets for the Old Trafford football during the Olympics, but it’s not the only one. Making it harder for people to participate in athletics and other sports is a shameful Olympic legacy.”
Past Saddleworth News articles about Churchill Fields can be found here.
Author: Jude Gidney - Editor
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