View Full Version : Well done Glasgow
footie chick
09-Nov-07, 13:53
Glasgow to host 2014 Commonwealth Games :D
Oh no not another one. With england hosting the olympics and trying for the world cup, this is just gonna be more money wasted. oh well, at least this one's in scotland.
£288 million to host the games !!!!
Sorry but i think there is more needy causes in Scotland just now. Slate me for it, but our hospitals, schools, roads all need up grading.
You could agrue how much revenue it will generate, but it will not recoup what has been spent on hosting the games. Also will the cost spiral like the scottish parliment buildings ? or like the Dome ?
£288 million to host the games !!!!
Sorry but i think there is more needy causes in Scotland just now. Slate me for it, but our hospitals, schools, roads all need up grading.
You could agrue how much revenue it will generate, but it will not recoup what has been spent on hosting the games. Also will the cost spiral like the scottish parliment buildings ? or like the Dome ?
I agree with you there is definetly more needy causes that the money could go to, than some sport's games.
I say well done Glasgow and Scotland for winning the bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
And already we have the moaning minnies girnan about the cost, for goodness sake, come on, let Glagow bask in the limelight for a while longer, before you start griping and girnan [disgust]
So you would rahter spend £288 million on a few weeks of sports than have that amount of money poured into schools, hospitals or an upgrade road or rail network ?
Congratulations Glasgow.
Let's be positive and encourage our young people.
" Not to gain a prize or defeat a rival, but to pace one another on the road to excellence."
Trinkie
Even more surprising was that Alex Salmond was promoting it as a bonus for the whole of the UK as well as Scotland. He's no fool, he knows which side his bread is buttered on.[lol] If he is convinced of that then the London olympics will benefit Scotland even more!.
Well done Glasgow.
I say well done Glasgow and Scotland for winning the bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
And already we have the moaning minnies girnan about the cost, for goodness sake, come on, let Glagow bask in the limelight for a while longer, before you start griping and girnan
Well said, golach. I believe that this will be a great investment both for Glasgow and for Scotland. I think it will contribute to the regeneration of the East End -including new housing - and will bring more money into our economy long term. :)
Project costs so often do end up higher than estimated of course, and no doubt some folk will then start thinking -if they don't already think that way -that it's too much money, could be better spent and so on...:confused
I ,for one, hope that we're not in for 7 years of moans and rants on the subject. I can understand -and agree with -the view that the London Olympics are too far away to be of great benefit to us in Scotland, but when it is a Scottish city hosting the games and Scottish athletes representing Scotland, it's bound to raise the profile of our country at a global level.
I hope that it will also raise the level of interest in sport and fitness, especially among our kids -this is such an important issue in Scotland as a whole, and especially in Glasgow.
Would it not be more sense to regenerate the east end with a cash boost rather than suggest that new sporting facilities will do that ?
Dont get me wrong i am all for sports and health but £288 m , come on, for new arena's, stadiums etc. And how will it benifit the economy in the long run ?
This is not a rant or a moan, its plainly stating that we should be looking to boost our own facilties for ourselves, the more important facilities ! Plus i dont think Scotland needs tp raise our profile, the scots are well thought of across the globe.
Solus, I appologise if it seemed I was referring to your post as either a rant or a moan.
I just have a weary feeling that there will be plenty of these to come! :(
I'm sure these Games will generate a lot of debate. At the moment I do feel there are significant potential benefits, outweighing the costs, because an event like this can kick start projects which otherwise just wouldn't happen.
I was still at school when we hosted the 1970 Commonwealth Games here in Edinburgh -it was a very exciting time, generated an enthusiasm for sport in even a total non-althete like me, and I do believe there have been long term benefits.
I agree that Scotland is very well thought of -if it wasn't I don't think we would have been chosen to host this event -but it won't hurt our tourist industry to keep our country as much in the public eye as possible.
I accept your points are completely valid, but come to a different conclusion.
Dont get me wrong i am all for sports and health but £288 m , come on, for new arena's, stadiums etc. And how will it benifit the economy in the long run ? This is not a rant or a moan, dont think Scotland needs tp raise our profile, the scots are well thought of across the globe.
Solus, IMO the 1970 IX Commonwealth Games held in Edinburgh, did a lot for Edinburgh and Scotland, our Athletes did us proud and to this day we are still using Meadowbank Stadium & the Commie Pool both structures and even the Commonwealth Village (now Halls of Residence for our students) and are still in everyday use.
I can see where you are coming from, maybe if you directed your rants and moans in the right direction, at our Parliament, as it is their job to see that your needs are fulfilled.
Let Glasgow and the East End have their moment
http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/sportscotland/asportingnation/article/0025/
Edinburgh had theirs!!!!!!!!!!
cuddlepop
09-Nov-07, 17:42
I have very mixed feelings on this issue.
In one way I'm glad we got the games as I can see the benifits of the event coming to Glasgow its just that I dont feel we're getting the "bread and butter" services provided efficiently before we spend millions on these games.:confused
The games only last for 10 days and the cost will, no doubt spiral. Having said that, there is always money being urinated away, often on lesser deserving cases. The area of Glasgow being used is badly in need of an uplift of some sort and there will be a legacy of benefits after the games are long gone. I fully understand people saying that other services are arguably more important and in need of financial investment. The fact is, though, that the Games are a sexier product when it comes to getting investment on board.
Here is an extract from a report on the benefits Manchester received from hosting the Games in 2002:-
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The Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games acted as a major stimulant for regional partnerships to secure over £600 million of public and private investment for East Manchester. This was a clear accelerant for the redevelopment of the 146-hectare derelict site, which became Sportcity, and for the corridor improvements linking the centre of the city and East Manchester. The investment has had continuing effects as developer attitudes and interest in East Manchester increases.
The main impacts of the Games can be summarised as follows.
• Creation of Employment: The Games resulted in at least 20,000 new jobs, and major developments planned in the East Manchester area are expected to create over 10,000 additional jobs.
• Investment in the Region: In total, around £600 million has been invested in the Northwest and it is expected that in East Manchester alone there will be over £2 billion in public and private investment over the next 15 years. In East Manchester, there has been significant investment resulting from the
Games and this includes the Asda/Walmart that created 850 jobs and the first phase development of Central Park, which is expected to create 6,000 jobs. New retail, hotel, casino and housing developments are planned, and investor interest in the region is growing.
• Sporting Legacy: The Games provided a legacy in terms of world class sporting facilities, events and, to a limited extent, increased participation in sport. Facilities include the City of Manchester Stadium (£111 million), English Institute of Sport in East Manchester (£16 million); regional hockey centre at Belle Vue (£4 million), Aquatics Centre in the city centre (£32 million), improvements to Heaton Park in Manchester (£1 million) and National Shooting Centre (Surrey) (£6 million).
• Improved Transport Links: The Games have speeded up investment in major transport links such as Metrolink, and demonstrated successful uses of public transport and Park and Ride. The improvements have also included a new rail station and ground interchange at the airport, quality bus corridors, refurbishment of Piccadilly train station hall and completion of Manchester/Salford Inner Relief Road and final link of the M60.
• Creation of Business Opportunities: 250 companies obtained contracts worth a total of £22 million as a result of the Games. A legacy is expertise in event planning and operation in the region. A business club set up for the Games continues to grow with members from 26 countries. A study for NWDA found that 33% of Northwest opinion leaders believed that the region had improved as a place to do business as a result of the Games, and 24% of companies in the Northwest believed that the Games had made a positive impact on their business;
• Improved Image of the Region: The media coverage reached over one billion people providing a boost for tourism. The atmosphere created by the Games combined with associated cultural activities and an inclusive approach contributed to positive perceptions of the event amongst members of the public. Monitoring of the press coverage achieved during the Games period identified the equivalent of in excess of £1 million in Public Relations value to the region. In a post-games study for the NWDA carried out in 2003, there had been a 54% increase in positive perceptions of the Northwest by residents from outside the region compared with a similar pre-Games survey in 2001.
• Increase in Visitor Numbers: One million visitors came to Manchester over the 10 days of the Games, and there was £18 million of net expenditure by visitors to the Games. Greater Manchester experienced an increase of 50,000 overseas resident visits. An additional £46 million has been spent by visitors in the region during and since the Games, and it is estimated that there will be an additional 300,000 visitors to Manchester each year as a result of the Games.
• A Culture of Volunteering: 10,000 volunteers worked on the Games, and many of these have since worked as volunteers on other events and/or obtained employment. 2,250 people gained a Level 1 qualification in event volunteering, which was specially devised for Commonwealth Games volunteers.
• A Cultural Legacy: The Spirit of Friendship festival aimed to celebrate the Commonwealth as well as the Games, thus leaving a cultural legacy. There were 2,000 events nationwide under the Spirit of Friendship umbrella, which included 200 events in the Northwest through Cultureshock and 13,500 young people participating in “Passport” events. A cultural legacy has been provided through on going cultural programmes.
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Who knows what will happen in Glasgow? I am looking forward to the chance to see some of the World's top athletes when the time comes and hope that it does benefit the City in some way in the long-term.
I say well done Glasgow and Scotland for winning the bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
And already we have the moaning minnies girnan about the cost, for goodness sake, come on, let Glagow bask in the limelight for a while longer, before you start griping and girnan [disgust]
well said
when i saw this thread i knew their would be more girnin than people being happy
Jeemag_USA
09-Nov-07, 18:29
Well I am not gurning, but I am also in agreement the money could be better spent elsewhere. I have never really saw the point of the Commonwealth games other than it is a chance for athletes from the UK to win medals without the USA, Russia, Germany or China to be there to stop them? I think 288 million is to much for something that is not even secondary to the Olympic Games, Athletics World Championships and European Championships are bigger than it. But well done to Glasgow for the achievement though ;)
Well done Glasgow Im sure they will be great hosts.
percy toboggan
09-Nov-07, 18:41
Manchester enjoyed its games, of that there is no doubt. I was not engaged in any way nor was I supportive of the bid. There has been a good legacy of sporting facilities in what was a dead or dying area...not least my own preferred football club, having dumped eighty years of history and tradition now have a new stadium - which in my opinion is a dreadful atmosphere free bowl.
My concern is that Salmond's Nats will now use these games to laud Scotland's 'resurgence' and foster even more resentment down south. The Nats best hopes for independence lie with anti-Scottish feeling in England.
If the English tax payer think they are part-funding these games then only more rancour will ensue. Perhaps as a way of demonstrating Scotland'#s stand alone possibilities all the cash needed for this athletic beanfeast should be raised north of the border. Don't chuck the Olympic thing my way because I reckon that whole farce is an utter waste of money.
Anyway, all that fiasco was started before the Scots had their own nationalist 'Government' (only elected because Labour made such a balls of things again)
Of course if you take the SNP (and independence) out of the equation I'm more than happy to see Scotland subsidised by the English to stage these games which will bring cheer to Glasgow, and establish facilities for Glaswegians long into the future. That said I'd still wish the Olympics was a non-starter - it's just too big...too costly...all for the sake of seeing who can jump highest, furthest, or run the quickest - pathetic.
Half of 'em are on drugs anyway.
Oh no not another one. With england hosting the olympics and trying for the world cup, this is just gonna be more money wasted. oh well, at least this one's in scotland.
Thank god...thats exactly what I was thinking.... nice to think that it would improve sport in Scotland...but I doubt it...guess that makes my cynical but I am more of a realist.
I say well done Glasgow and Scotland for winning the bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
And already we have the moaning minnies girnan about the cost, for goodness sake, come on, let Glagow bask in the limelight for a while longer, before you start griping and girnan [disgust]
No...we are not moaning minnies we are realists...
My concern is that Salmond's Nats will now use these games to laud Scotland's 'resurgence' and foster even more resentment down south..
Now now Percy, even I don't mind a wee bit of lauding for a wee bit of a resurgence for Scotland, she deserves it afterall, Salmond and crew no doubt put in a lot of hardwork and corperate hospitality to finalise this bid.
Well done, Glasgow. It is really nice that UK residents are going to have a chance to actually go to see these games or the Olympics.... if we can get tickets without taking out a mortgage, that is.
zenmaster
10-Nov-07, 01:21
Brilliant for Glasgow and Scotland although it's disappointing to see an increase in "Jock bashing" sentiments from a vocal minority of our friends down south. Let's hope this good news is followed up by a Scotland win against Italy to see us particpate in the Euro finals.
So do we get Lottery Money to help fund it and Scotlands Dream Number for the Games
So do we get Lottery Money to help fund it and Scotlands Dream Number for the Games
I soooo doubt it...
George Brims
10-Nov-07, 01:43
...even the Commonwealth Village (now Halls of Residence for our students) and are still in everyday use.
Oh Golach, you have fallen victim to an old bit of Edinburgh folklore. The Pollocks Halls were built by the Uni to house students (including at one time yours truly), and used as the Commonwealth Village. It is not the case, as I heard an old lady say on a bus going past there one day, that "the cooncil built they flats for the Commonwealth Games, and then gave them tae the damn students".
Most of the "claimed" benefits for Manchester, apart from the Cycle Track, sorry Volodrome, would have been happening in any case. The "improved area" of East Manchester needed the improvement because the Council, during the 1960s had thrown up totally unsuitable housing, One huge area being called "Fort Ardwick" and the other "Legoland". I think the names give you an idea how wonderful they were. The money borrowed to pay for them being built was to be repaid over 60 years, ie. into the 2020s. Those whole areas were demolished a long time ago, at great additional expense to the Council.
The reference to the "final link to the M60" suddenly being completed as a result of the "Games", well that is, how can I put it politely, the biggest piece of Clap-trap I have heard in a long time. When it comes to "misleading" statements it makes Tony Blair look like a Saint! The M60 is a Motorway Ring Road right round the outskirts of Manchester which has been there for decades. The only gap with the part of it which fell within the Manchester City Boundary because the City Council had steadfastly
blocked all attempts to complete the link for the last 30 years to my knowledge as part of their avowed policy. To claim it's completion was somehow as a result of their behaviour is unbeliev - I'll correct that - absolutely typical of their behaviour of claiming credit for things which they are eventually dragged, kicking and screaming into accepting.
I rather think the 2 billion inward investment over 15 years has more to do with the Government waving that amount of money around and getting various areas in England to compete for it as a backdoor method of introducing widespread "Congestion Charging". What that has to do with the 2002 Games I would love to know.
Don't be fooled by Manchester’s claims. Most of the "advantages" other then the odd Sports Stadium would have happened anyway or are totally unconnected with the Games and in some cases come about by the efforts and hard work of the rest of the North West of England and totally unconnected with Manchester in any way.
I would be more inclined to believe the rose-tinted version of how beneficial 2002 was to Manchester and the surrounding area if it had been produced elsewhere and not by the very people who have to justify to original outlay. They would hardly be likely to say it had been a massive disaster and a complete waste of money, would they?
I have no objection to Glasgow getting the Commonwealth Games, good luck to them, but don't fall for any of the nonsense about it being the Goose which will lay the Golden Egg.
percy toboggan
10-Nov-07, 08:55
Jaws your geography and knowledge of Manchester is not what you think it might be.
For a start, Fort Ardwick was in Ardwick a mile or more form the city centre - to the south . I am unsure of the location of 'Legoland' but feel it might be Hulme, to the south west of the city. Certainly no architectural abberations stood on the site of Eastlands.
The areas which were re-developed for the games are now known as 'Eastlands' there is a clue there - built on Beswick, and Openshaw to the east of the city. There is no doubt those areas have benefitted from the investment however, much more is needed but not in the shape of a casino.
The 'missing link' of the M60 motorway was long overdue, and I think you are correct in saying it had nothing to do with the games. However hardly any of it lies within the city boundaries at all. I have an intimate daily knowledge of this stretch of road. It's coming has heralded huge inbvestment in areas such as Tameside , around Ashton-under-Lyne. I do not understand your remark 'it has been there for decades' ' right around the outskirts' ??
You'll rememebr the actual area which form the city of Machester is relatively small. Housing within it is probably seventy per cent local authority built and still owned, for the most part by the council or housing associations. Due to this limit on size and therefroe revenue, Manchester is not a wealthy city. Compared with places such as Leeds it is fairly tiny in fact.
Manchester is still paying for it's heavy industrial past when in many ways it led the world and punched well above its weight. Even then it was a tale of three cities. The wealthy , the middle-classes and a huge majority who worked like dogs and lived amongst the squalour of poor housing doing their best to retain dignity and cleanliness. I digress however.
THe Commonwealth Games gave Manchester an undoubted boost. A shot in the arm and consolation for two failed Olympic bids (thank heaven they failed, incidentally) . Thousands volunteered to help, and the ones I know of really enjoyed it and their lives were enriched by the process. The whole affair was a resounding success, partly I feel due to its smaller scale (than the Olympics). Despite the dreadful weather at the closing ceremnony Mancunians, even disenchanted curmudgeons like me could see the city had done something to improve its image. For a while I availed myself of the splendid new tennis facility - it's huge, indoor/outdoor and floodlit.
Much work is still needed, but without the games many of those areas to the east would still be languishing as derelict fit only as playgrounds for the children of the cities 'have-nots' and dumping grounds for stolen cars, and the detritus of a still ailing society.
Shabbychic
10-Nov-07, 15:57
I was on the BBC website (http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?forumID=3802&edition=1&ttl=20071110145525)and am utterly disgusted by the venom spewing of some of our English neighbours about the games. I was always led to believe that it was the Scots who had a problem with the English, but we would have to go some to beat this lot.:(
Shabbychic
10-Nov-07, 16:08
Sorry about that, hope link works now.:D
I was on the BBC website (http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?forumID=3802&edition=1&ttl=20071110145525)and am utterly disgusted by the venom spewing of some of our English neighbours about the games.:(
Got it now thanks. :)
Try to be impartial, going by this thread, you can also be Scottish and still spew venom about the games.
Shabbychic
10-Nov-07, 16:16
Got it now thanks. :)
Try to be impartial, going by this thread, you can also be Scottish and still spew venom about the games.
It not so much whether some agree or disagree about the games, but a lot of the nastiness is mainly aimed at the Scottish people in general.
I believe everyone is entitled to their opinions on the hosting of the event, good or bad, but to call us things like "parasites" is a bit below the belt.:(
but to call us things like "parasites" is a bit below the belt.:(
I agree but there is always a mindless vocal minority everywhere, I would have used the word 'symbionts' myself.
Shabbychic
10-Nov-07, 16:25
I would have used the word 'symbionts' myself.
Not quite "symbionts" as i think they benefit as well.:lol:
percy toboggan
10-Nov-07, 19:32
I was on the BBC website (http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://forum.caithness.org/go.php?url=http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?forumID=3802&edition=1&ttl=20071110145525)and am utterly disgusted by the venom spewing of some of our English neighbours about the games. I was always led to believe that it was the Scots who had a problem with the English, but we would have to go some to beat this lot.:(
This is fairly new shabbychic. It's all getting out of hand. Much of it stems from jealousy I feel. Undertandable envy at any rate.
The English at the moment are being screwed every which way. They see Scotland's population benefitting in so many major ways that they aren't.
The great groundswell to seperate the two nations is now coming from England, and Alex Salmond is playing his game very smartly.
I hope it settles down but am not confident it will. I wonder what reaction English winners will get on the podium in 2014, as the cross of St.George is hoisted high above Glasgow.
Percy, yes the area round Ashton-u-Lyne has benefited from the M60 and that area isn’t in Manchester but the connections to what was the M66 at Middleton and the connection at the other end at the what was the M63 and the M67 both cross into part of the City Boundaries and both those locations have been in use since the 1980s which I make at least two decades ago. The section across Ashton Moss, which is part of the final section was being built in the mid 1990s.
Legoland was the huge system built Estate, officially known as the Turkey Lane Estate which was on Ashton New Road very near where Alan Turing Way and the Velodrome are. .Fort Ardwick was on Hyde Road which is only just to the south of the same area. The estate in Hulme was known as The Crescents and won awards in the 1960s for being the modern equivalent of the Adams’ Crescents in Bath, Hence on of them being called Robert Adams Crescent. How they won an award I will never know because they made the worst of the East German Housing Blocks look beautiful by comparison.
Manchester is no different from most other products of the Industrial Revolution and, in fact was far better placed than most. The areas you speak of became rundown and derelict because the hearts of them ere ripped out when most the population and hence the workforce were forced out of the city to surrounding areas. Businesses moved out of the city because of massive increases in the Rates imposed by the Council in the 1970s which forced businesses out of the city.
I doubt that many people, outside the Manchester Area, even remember where the Games where held and those who had to get to work in the City Centre were certainly not impressed.
Glasgow will, like Manchester, get a couple of new Sports Venues, a bit of tarting up, perhaps even a couple of transport links and a couple of years after the only people who will remember it all ever happened will be the Glaswegians and everybody else will say, “What happened where? Oh, did it really?”
To clarify, as far as I am concerned Glasgow has just as much right to the Games as anywhere else and neither Glasgow or the rest of Scotland should be pilloried for them having gained it.
The only point I am making is that they shouldn’t fall for their own PR and believe it will be a solution to all their problems. There will be a few advantages here and there but, in the main, nothing much will change.
It’s like putting Christmas Decorations up at home. Yes they make the place look cheerful for a while but when you’ve taken them down it’s still the same old house you had before.
And Percy is right about the English change of attitude being fairly recent. It has only arisen since the Scottish Executive decided it would go into competition with Westminster for give-aways and then insist on gloating about the fact to South of the Border. Add to that the fact that at the same time Scottish MPs were being used as lobby fodder in Westminster to impose on England the very things that the MSPs were boasting about not implementing here and that was a certain way of causing friction. The SNP are now using the situation to further their own aims in the hope that the English will force Scotland to accept what the majority of Scots may not wish to agree to at the present time.
As many have found out before, stirring up conflict is one thing, stopping it once it has taken hold is quite another. It is fairly easy to start but nobody ever knows where it will go or more worryingly, how it will end.
orkneylass
12-Nov-07, 20:28
I was in Glasgow on Friday and the atmosphere was great. I stayed in Sportscity in Manchester in September and saw the extent of the regeneration and how much pride this had enegendered and how it had become part of Manchester's development and history. The same will happen for the East end of Glasgow. One of the most important things for Scotland is for it to become a more positive and confident society and hosting the games will help. In encouraging Scotland to become competitive, and more health conscious, the games will do what a basic regenration project cannot. The athletes are going to be lucky folk - I just love Glasgow.
I was in Glasgow on Friday and the atmosphere was great. I stayed in Sportscity in Manchester in September and saw the extent of the regeneration and how much pride this had enegendered and how it had become part of Manchester's development and history. The same will happen for the East end of Glasgow. One of the most important things for Scotland is for it to become a more positive and confident society and hosting the games will help. In encouraging Scotland to become competitive, and more health conscious, the games will do what a basic regenration project cannot. The athletes are going to be lucky folk - I just love Glasgow.
Perhaps the games would have been better received in Nigeria, had they been successful in their bid. The head of the Nigerian team was incredibly gracious, sporting and enthusiastic in defeat and embodied the spirit in which the games were originally intended to create. It is impossible to have imagined the same reaction from Seb Coe had London lost out in the 2012 bid!!
Och, we Scots, we love a good moan don't we? No doubt if Nigeria had won we would have been shouting for a Steward's Enquiry!!
weeboyagee
12-Nov-07, 22:41
Well done Glasgow - I know how you feel winning a bid like that!! Heh-heh! :D
WBG :cool:
It's not the first time recently that I have seen this type of nastiness posted about Scots, last time was about prescription charges. It really is sad to see, as a united nation if there is this much racism towards each other, how on earth do people not from this country get treated :~(
Why shouldn't we have the commonwealth games? Well done to Glasgow.
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