LONDON, Feb 24: Opposition lawmakers are urging the British government to give a clear statement on the rising cost of staging the 2012 Olympics in London after a report said it could be as much as 9 billion pounds (US$17.6 billion; euro13.1 billion) – almost four times the amount originally planned.

The BBC said that construction costs was now being estimated at 3.3 billion (US$6.5 billion; euro4.9 billion) – a rise of more than 50 per cent – and the government has also set aside 2 billion pounds (US$$3.9 billion; euro2.98 billion) to allow for potential spiralling costs of construction materials and labour.The total will be increased by a 1 billion-pound (US$1.96 billion; euro1.46 billion) tax bill which the government initially believed didn't apply and the BBC said security costs have gone up to about 900 million pounds (US$1.76 billion; euro1.31 billion).

When London announced the bid in 2003, the cost was estimated at 2.375 billion pounds (US$4.7 billion; euro3.54 billion).

John Whittingdale, an opposition lawmaker who is chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee, said the government had to prevent more speculation about the costs by announcing what the estimates actually were.

“What is important, I think, is that the Government comes out and gives a clear statement so that we can actually have some facts rather than continue to have figures bandied about which seem to rise by the week,” Whittingdale told the BBC on Saturday.

“We haven't had a clear statement, and therefore speculation is bound to continue. That's going to start to undermine confidence as people think that the cost burden is just going to up and up.”

Responding to the BBC report, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said it was just the latest of many figures to have surfaced in the media.

It said discussions were going on across government to resolve outstanding issues and it would make an announcement about long term budget figures when these have concluded.—AP