The UK government has admitted that the National Lottery may not be reimbursed for its £1 billion Olympic 2012 investment for up to 20 years after the event. Olympics minister Tessa Jowell told a parliamentary committee that it may take a decade to sell land and reimburse the lottery, while the London Development Agency (LDA) said it would not be completed until 2031.
The Guardian newspaper reported that both the LDA and the government base their figures on a survey of land value increases in London over the last 20 years, which suggested a potential range of income between £800 million and £3 billion.