After Games victory, Scots dream of a Hampden win

Published on Sunday 11 November 2007 00:02

THE party clean-up has barely started but the tough business of delivering the games is about to begin. A Commonwealth Games bill will be brought before Holyrood tomorrow as the country gears up to deliver an event that will "change lives".

There were scenes of wild jubilation in Colombo's Cinnamon Grand Hotel on Friday when it was confirmed that Glasgow would host one of the biggest sporting events on the planet.

But now the team that masterminded the city's successful bid is preparing for seven years of hard work to transform plans into reality.

First Minister Alex Salmond confirmed that a parliamentary bill would be introduced to put in place a framework to deliver on pledges made to the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Salmond also revealed that a Glasgow 2014 strategic committee would meet within a fortnight to discuss the leadership and management of the Games. The committee will feature prominent roles for both the First Minister and Louise Martin, chairman of the Commonwealth Games Council for Scotland.

Salmond pledged Scotland would deliver the "best Games ever". He said: "This will change lives and change lifestyles. There will be decisions and appointments made in the near future."

Glasgow City Council leader Steven Purcell said: "We have got seven years of hard work ahead of us. We will all be meeting in the next fortnight to talk about a number of matters.

"This includes the right organisational structure to make sure that we deliver everything we have promised and deliver the key pledges such as legacy, that sit alongside the Games.

"The majority of the building projects are already committed and work has started on the in door arena in the east end. People expect nothing less than the best games that have ever been staged and we are incredibly fortunate that we have a country and a city that can actually deliver."

The race is on to create a Games village in Glasgow's east end which will become the centrepiece of the 1.6bn Clyde Gateway regeneration project designed to transform the area.

The M74 extension and the East End Regeneration Route will link the area directly to the motorway network and improve pedestrian routes and vehicle access. There are plans to extend Glasgow's Subway with a single line from the SECC to Parkhead, which would mean better access between riverside developments and the regenerated east end.

The Games village will be twice the size of its counterpart in Melbourne in 2006 and will provide accommodation for around 6,000 athletes in more than 1,000 properties. It will also be built as a 'new urban suburb' with a range of homes including two-bedroom flats in low-rise buildings and three-bedroom semi-detached homes which will be sold or turned into social housing afterwards.