Our examination covered the lessons learned from the outcome of the first competition to sell the Dome (March 1999 to February 2001), the selection of a preferred bidder during the subsequent competition (March to December 2001), and the subsequent negotiation of detailed terms with the selected partner, Meridian Delta Limited. It also evaluated whether English Partnerships have now obtained a good deal. In particular we aimed to evaluate the extent to which the sale achieved the Government's key objectives, namely a worthwhile and sustainable concept for the Dome, value for money, and deliverability of the deal.
We approached our subject by formulating the Situation, Complication and Key Question.
■ Situation: The Government required English Partnerships to find a sustainable use for the Millennium Dome.
■ Complication: After the unsuccessful attempt to sell the Dome involving two successive preferred bidders, English Partnerships achieved a different type of deal, to preserve the Dome as part of a wider scheme for developing the Greenwich Peninsula.
The key question which we sought to address through our examination was whether, having learned lessons from the previous unsuccessful attempt, English Partnerships and the Department now have a good deal.