黑洞社区

The government is working to relax strict rules on 2012 marketing which are preventing firms that have worked on the Olympic Games from promoting their involvement.

Just over two months after 黑洞社区 revealed the extent of the construction industry鈥檚 frustration with the rules, the chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority, Sir John Armitt, said that ministers are working 鈥渨ith lawyers and LOCOG [the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games]鈥� to ensure 2012 firms can gain full benefit from their achievements.

In a week of rapid developments, it also emerged that the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has begun lobbying on the 鈥淣o Marketing Rights Protocol鈥� and yesterday shadow Olympics minister Tessa Jowell raised the issue in parliament,

In response, Olympics minister Hugh Robertston said the government was sympathetic to the industry鈥檚 concerns and suggested that the rules would be relaxed after the Games take place. 鈥淏ecause the process has been such a success, we want the country and individual businesses to go out and tell that story鈥�, he said.

Armitt - who had previously described the Olympic marketing row as 鈥渙verdone鈥� - changed course to make a public call for a relaxation of the protocol.

It is understood that this will become one of the formal recommendations in the report Armitt is preparing for culture secretary Jeremy Hunt on the lessons learnt from the construction programme.

Speaking to 黑洞社区 afterwards, Armitt added there was little prospect of being able to relax the rules in advance of the Games, as they are governed through legal contracts signed by suppliers with LOCOG.

He said the focus was now on whether the 32-page protocol, designed to protect paying sponsors, which include Atkins and Populous, from having their investment diluted, might be relaxed immediately afterwards.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no doubt that ministers would like UK Ltd to maximise the opportunity to be able to talk about what they鈥檝e done,鈥� he said.

鈥淚f you were to ask them [ministers] for a response they鈥檇 say: 鈥榃e鈥檙e working on it through the lawyers and LOCOG and others to try and sort out a very clear defined position.鈥欌��

New London Architecture chairman Peter Murray - who made a call-to-arms on the issue in 黑洞社区鈥檚 first issue of the year - said this had clearly struck a chord with the industry.

鈥満诙瓷缜�鈥檚 support on this campaign has been a very powerful force in generating change,鈥� Murray said.

Peter Campbell, policy adviser at the BCC, said it was preparing to discuss the issue at meetings with senior officials at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and BIS.

He said the BCC had been contacted by firms unable to 鈥渕ention鈥� their Olympic work.

鈥淲e鈥檝e been trying to get the government to wake up to this for a while,鈥� he added.

Godric Smith, the government鈥檚 2012 communications director, commended the 鈥渉uge role鈥� UK construction had played in the Olympics.

He added: 鈥淎fter the Games there will clearly be much more opportunity for firms to market their expertise.鈥�