Issues

As the London 2012 Olympic Games move closer, different aspects of the games and surrounding policy issues change in importance and public focus. In this section experts in public policy analysis from RAND Europe provide commentary on the Olympic issues that are currently in the public eye; providing an evidence base and expert opinion on the challenges that these issues pose to the delivery of a successful Games.

Security in Focus

Security Planning for the 2012 London Olympics

Hosting the 2012 Olympic Games will place London and the UK at the centre of the world's attention – something that carries with it potential risk. In security terms, planners must consider the most direct threat of a terrorist operation that seeks to attack or disrupt Olympic sites and venues. However, the potential threat from terrorism and politically motivated crime must be seen in a wider context than the Games themselves. Groups and individuals anxious to seek publicity and recognition for their myriad causes will have a window of opportunity to target not just London but the UK and its interests, knowing full well that they are guaranteed the level of global media coverage accorded to a sporting event of such proportions.

As the security environment in 2012 is unclear, security requirements for the 2012 Games must be developed in the face of uncertainty. It cannot be assumed that the current range of threats will not broaden or intensify. Does existing security planning reflect the current high level of threat and secondly, will it reflect the situation that could potentially exist in five years time? The responsibility for assessing the current and on-going threat to the UK from terrorism lies with the Security Service and in particular its Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC). Security planning will be proceeding on the basis of both the current general threat and more specifically, on the threat posed to the Olympic Games itself.

The major challenge for both JTAC and the security planners is two-fold; to try to foresee what the threat environment in 2012 could look like and then to gear their efforts to countering it. The chapter on "Understanding the security agenda" in the RAND Europe report entitled Setting the Agenda for an Evidence-based Olympics sets out a methodology that may help security planners with this task. However, the difficulties do not do not end there as these elements must also be integrated with the planning for each of the events that make up the Games and the planning for the movement, control and safety of the spectators. Five years may seem like a long time to prepare for such a major event, but when faced with these realities, every day counts.