The Brisbane Olympic Games deserve a gold medal for hyperbole when it comes to economic benefits

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The primary race of any Olympics is that of politicians dashing out statements boasting how a lot they are going to profit the financial system. Alas Brisbane 2032 isn’t any completely different.

The Queensland government has acknowledged that “KPMG has estimated financial and social advantages at $8.1bn for Queensland and $17.6bn for Australia”.

Scott Morrison shortly used the determine as properly, telling 4BC radio that “we’re estimating … virtually $18bn of financial and social advantages for the nation”.

He dropped the “social” half in his press conference on Thursday, saying “after all it’s going to be an enormous financial increase to Australia, some $18bn is the estimate over the course of now and to the Video games”.

So what are these advantages?

The very first thing to know is the KPMG report has calculated them over 20 years – from 2022 to 2042.

The “social advantages” embrace the principle sorts, the primary of that are “resident advantages”.

These are “the intangible advantages to residents of a bunch metropolis/nation related to legacy, group spirit, status and civic pleasure related to internet hosting a Video games”.

KPMG calculated this profit by way of a “willingness to pay” measure.

Importantly it didn’t survey folks in Queensland about their willingness to pay for such issues however as a substitute decided it by “borrowing outcomes” from earlier research executed for different host cities.

Then there are “well being advantages” they estimate will come about on account of “elevated participation in bodily exercise throughout Queensland and the nation” that may result in “decrease danger of continual illness” and “improved productiveness” on account of fewer sick days.

Who knew an Olympic Video games was essentially the most environment friendly method to enhance public well being!

A study after the Sydney Olympics discovered that solely “a average enhance in grownup sport participation occurred”, and that after the Melbourne Commonwealth Video games “there was no proof to assist the proposition that the occasion boosted grownup sports activities participation in Australia or the host state”.

Then lastly now we have “volunteering advantages”. These are issues resembling “self-improvement and altruistic worth” in addition to the hope that there might be “an elevated chance of future volunteering”.

All up these social advantages have been “quantified” to be price “as much as $3.5bn for Queensland and as much as $9.11bn for Australia” (over 20 years).

Sure, greater than half of the $18bn determine being thrown round is for issues like civic pleasure, higher well being on account of train, and self-improvement from volunteering.

It’s like freelancers being advised they received’t be paid for his or her work, however they are going to profit from a whole lot of {dollars}’ price of publicity.

Then now we have the “financial advantages” – on account of elevated tourism and constructing works and many others.

A study in 2011 discovered the Sydney Olympics “generated a loss in Australian actual personal and public consumption in current worth phrases of $2.1bn. This means that the Olympics didn’t carry the financial stimulus that has been claimed.”

Another study discovered that since 1960 the median overrun of prices for Olympic video games is of the order of 120% – ie the prices typically blow to be greater than double the preliminary estimate. Sydney’s prices overran by 90%.

If you can’t view the graph click here

Morrison additionally talked up the declare that the Games will “create round 120,000 new jobs.”

This determine as properly is over 20 years, and sound much less spectacular when you think about that by 2042 we’re more likely to have an additional 6 million extra folks employed than now.

Let’s simply hope it isn’t like the Salt Lake City Olympics which promised 35,000 jobs however delivered “between 4,000 and seven,000” and a report discovered “the Video games had little to no impact on employment after 12 months”.

My private favorite half within the report was the suggestion that there was an financial profit on account of “retained expenditure” from Australians not spending cash abroad to attend the Olympic Video games.

By that measure each Olympic Video games not held in Australia has been costing our financial system.

Look, Olympics Video games are enjoyable – attending the Sydney Video games have been considered one of my sporting highlights – and the quickest technique to begin having enjoyable is to snicker everytime you hear a politician connect a greenback quantity to how a lot we’re all going to profit from them.

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