21/09/2012

G4S Should Forgo £57m Olympic Security Fee MPs Say

After failing to supply the required number of Olympics security staff G4S should forgo its £57m management fee, a committee of MPs has said.

In a report on Olympics security, the Home Affairs Committee go on to argue that G4S should also compensate people who were accredited for Olympics work with the firm but not given any shifts.

The firm's Olympics contract was worth £237m, including the management fee.

G4S said the £57m management fee was "substantially" real costs not profit.

But committee chairman Keith Vaz said the firm had delivered an "11th-hour fiasco" after "recklessly boasting" that it could meet the terms of its contract.

"The largest security company in the world, providing a contract to their biggest UK client, turned years of carefully-laid preparations into an 11th-hour fiasco.”

Mr Vaz explained: "Twenty-four hours before they admitted their failure, Nick Buckles met with the Home Secretary and did not bother to inform her that they were unable to deliver on their contract, even though he knew about the shortfall a week before."

The report also suggested that ministers should maintain a blacklist of companies to avoid when making future procurement decisions.

A G4S spokesman said: "As explained by both G4S and Locog to the committee, the £57m 'management fee' is not a profit.

"It relates substantially to real costs which have been incurred such as wages, property and IT expenditure. The final financial settlement is currently under discussion with Locog."

(H)


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