Legal
challenges by Tottenham
and Leyton Orient, plus an anonymous complaint to the European Commission, have
led to fears that court action could drag on for years while the stadium
remains empty.
A
ministerial statement is expected around lunchtime, saying that the stadium
will remain in public ownership and leased out to an anchor tenant following a
new tender process.
It is likely
that under the new tender process any costs of transforming the stadium after
the 2012 Games will be covered by the Olympic
Park Legacy Company.
Prospective
tenants will then be asked to bid for the stadium with the running track
remaining in place.
The tenants
would pay an annual rent to the OPLC which could actually prove to be less
costly for the likes of West Ham.
The move
will also remove uncertainty over the stadium ahead of London's bid for the
2017 world athletics championships, although that was not a major consideration
in the decision to abandon the current deal.
The
Government, the London Mayor's office and the OPLC have moved to scrap the
current deal in order to try to end the legal challenges over the stadium's
ownership.
There has
been an anonymous complaint to the European Commission, claiming that the £40
million being provided by Newham to West Ham
represented "state aid". That complaint was regarded with particular
concern with worries that it could take years to come to a conclusion.
There were
also fears that the application for a judicial review by Spurs and Orient could
drag on and even if their bids failed they could appeal.
It is
understood that no contract has been signed with West Ham, allowing the move to
a fresh tender process, but the club will be encouraged to bid again
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