UK Eyes Bill to Guide Games Bidding Process

The UK government is looking to approve a Major Sporting Events Bill to help during the bidding process for major international sporting events.

Such events are becoming increasingly professional and, hence, place increasingly onerous and complex demands on the nations hosting them.

Winning a bid frequently requires the passage of new legislation as a matter of urgency.

The drafting of a new, generic sports events Act - covering issues such as visas, ticket touting, image/trademark protection and advertising - could, it is felt, act as a template for any event, leaving specific details to be addressed via a statutory instrument.

Exclusive: Government plans to introduce Major Sporting Events Act
Insidethegames
November 15, 2010

Transport Department Proposes $98 Billion Transit Plan

The transport department has presented a 750 billion Rand (~$98 billion USD) plan to parliament that would drastically renovate the rail systems of South Africa. Major links proposed in the plan would expand the regional rail service Gautrain to connect Johannesburg with Durban and Polokwane.

The plan's project manager, Lanfranc Situma, told the portfolio committee for transport that the department needed urgent approval from MPs so that the cabinet-initiated National Transport Master Plan (Natmap) could "get moving".

Natmap transport planning consultant Paul Lombard recommended to the committee that studies be done on whether it was feasible to extend the Gautrain project to the Durban-Johannesburg and Pretoria-Polokwane lines.

R750bn transport plan pitched
Fin 24
May 4, 2010