The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are the "catalyst for a foreign invasion by the worlds of business, politics, finance and the arts which, it is hoped, will showcase the very best of U.K. plc and attract investment for decades to come," according to Chorley & Dugan of the London INDEPENDENT. U.K. PM David Cameron hailed the nation's moment in the global spotlight as a multibillion-pound "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." With "anaemic growth figures expected this week," London is "pinning everything on an Olympic boost to lift the economy out of double-dip recession." Foreign Office Minister for the Games Jeremy Browne said, "London will be, for the next seven weeks, not just the capital of the U.K., but the capital of the world" (INDEPENDENT, 7/22). In London, Cultural Secretary Jeremy Hunt penned an article published in the London INDEPENDENT calling on the British public to get behind the Games. Hunt wrote, "We Brits are incredibly good at looking for problems when things are actually going incredibly well. As we count down and the weather looks up, it's time for everyone to put aside the usual British cynicism and start getting behind the Games." He continued, "In difficult times, the Olympic build has been a remarkable success story for the U.K. and a great advert for U.K. plc. Europe's largest construction project was not only completed on time, within budget, and to cutting-edge standards, but has also transformed one of London's most deprived areas into one of its best served." Hunt noted the "real" London 2012 story is "only just beginning." He concluded that this is the first Games, "which have been designed right from the start with legacy at its heart -- not just for east London, but for the whole of the country" (INDEPENDENT, 7/22).
