Last week we assisted a delegation of six Tokyo Metropolitan Assemblymen on their study visit to London in support of Tokyo’s hosting of the 2020 Olympic Games. As well as inspecting London 2012 venues and the Olympic Park, at City Hall they met with Darren Johnson AM (Chair of the London Assembly) and Nicky Gavron AM (former Deputy Mayor and current London Assembly Planning Committee chair), in addition to key officials of the Greater London Authority. The group were told of the key role of the assembly in holding the Olympics organisers to account over staging the “greenest games ever” and ensuring a sustainable legacy after the games.
They also visited the London Legacy Development Corporation to hear first-hand about the post-games use of the Olympic Park and venues. At UK Trade & Investment (in association with the Japan External Trade Organization, JETRO), the group learnt about the success of engaging UK business in the staging of the games with positive results for the British economy, an impressive key takeaway point for Tokyo’s 2020 planning, they felt.
