Exclusive:Police planning bill for Glasgow Commonwealth Games hits £1.6m
Full budget for operation to be confirmed later this year
Planning work for the policing operation for this summer’s Commonwealth Games has cost more than £1.6 million to date, with a final budget expected to be agreed this spring.
Up to half a million spectators and several thousand athletes are expected to descend on Glasgow later this year for the showpiece event, which will be one of the most high-profile operations overseen by Police Scotland this year.
The national force’s plans for the sporting spectacle, referred to as internally as Operation Lannair, are well underway. Although the 2026 iteration of the Games will be streamlined compared to previous years, it will still be the biggest international event in Scotland since the United Nations climate change conference, COP26, in 2021.
An internal audit report prepared by the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) shows that as of January, cost for the planning phase of the Games policing has reached £1,638,000, and had been “mutually agreed” with Glasgow 2026 Ltd, the organising company tasked with delivering the event.
The report, which will come before a meeting of the SPA’s audit, risk and assurance committee on Thursday, states that the planning costs are based on the salary costs of the core planning team, with final anticipated delivery costs confirmed once resource requirements are finalised.
The report states that there is a “clear governance structure” in place to support and provide oversight for the planning and delivery of policing the Games, and notes that work will ramp up as the event comes closer, with the majority of resourcing work having begun in January. It explains that planning arrangements for the Games “continue at pace” and have continued to develop over the course of the review.
In December, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) announced it will conduct a strategic review to look at how prepared Police Scotland is to help deliver a safe and successful Games. The force will also oversee policing of the King’s Baton relay journey throughout Scotland.
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A terms of reference published by HMICS says they will provide an independent assessment of the state, effectiveness and efficiency of policing arrangements for the event.
The review will also look at the impact of the event on normal policing services to the communities across Scotland. It is expected that a report detailing the watchdog’s findings will be published in May.
In the terms of reference, Craig Naylor, HM chief inspector of constabulary in Scotland, pointed out that although the Games will be hosted in Scotland, they involve “complex UK wide and international considerations, particularly regarding the security arrangements for athletes, spectators, and international dignitaries.
“Police Scotland will be required to deliver a substantial policing operation to support the Games, while continuing to maintain routine policing services across the country,” he explained.
Approximately 3,000 athletes from 74 nations are expected to participate across the programme of sports, which run from 23 July until 2 August. The overall budget of the 2026 Games stands at around £150m, with no public money involved.
The total cost to Police Scotland of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, which were also held in Glasgow, was £26.1m, although that sum was also fully funded by the event organisers.
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