Dome is given to consortium

THE Dome and its surrounding land is to be given away to a property consortium, in exchange for the promise - but no guarantee - of big profits as it is developed over the next 25 years, the Government announced this afternoon.

In what they said represented a 'good value for money' deal the Dome will be converted into a 20,000-seater arena.

Some 20 acres of the surrounding land will become the Dome Waterfront, a smart development on the banks of the Thames, and over the next 20 years the Meridian Delta consortium will turn the rest into a 'mini-city' with 7,000 new homes and businesses.

But the exact share of the profits which will come back to the taxpayer from such a large give-away have still to be worked out, Lord Falconer admitted this afternoon.

Lord Falconer announced the strategy, making his last statement on the Dome before moving to the Home Office, with no sign of which minister would be unfortunate enough to inherit the portfolio.

As he stood up in the House of Lords to make the statement, the minister told peers that the private-venture deal means the Dome will be able to offer 'world-class entertainment' after being turned into a huge concert arena with £135m investment.

All other options had been considered for the site, he said, including the possibility of tearing down the Dome and using all of the land, but that the current plan represented the best value for money, offering the prospect of giving back £550 million to the public purse over 20 years.

Lord Falconer said that by selling the land in parcels, under the direction of the Government's property arm, English Partnerships, the public would benefit from the increasing land values. But no 'exact' figure had been set at which the profits would be split.

The Anschutz Entertainment Group developing the Dome promised to attract international performers. AEG will host a minimum of 150 events per annum and the live entertainment will be 'a combination of music concerts, family entertainment and sport'.

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