British Prime Minister Gordon Brownon Friday hailed the London 2012 Olympics as a "shot in the arm for the economy." He made the remarks during a visit to the Olympic site in east London to mark the half-way point between the winning of the bid and the 2012 opening ceremony.

Brown said work on the Olympic Park and Village will provide work for 30,000 people over the next few years, with a peak workforce of 11,000 in 2010. It will also provide 250 new construction apprenticeships over the course of the project, bringing the total number up to 350.

On a tour of the site with Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell, Olympic Delivery Authority chairman John Armitt, 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe and 1500m runner Lisa Dobriskey, Brown said: "Today, as we reach the halfway point in London 2012, we can see how the Olympics, one of the biggest construction projects in Europe, are a prime example of how public investment can help get us through this difficult period."

He referred the 2012 games as a massive shot in the arm for the economy and public investment at its best, providing high quality jobs, training, and billions of pounds worth of contracts for British firms.

The Olympic Development Agency which has already promised to provide 2000 training and work placements through the Olympic project, confirmed on Friday that companies bidding for 500 million pounds (one pound equals to about 1.5 U.S. dollars) of new contracts must provide an apprenticeship scheme as part of their submission.

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