The chief executive of the G4S, the global security company overseeing the Olympic Games in the U.K., said that he was unaware that his firm would not be able to provide enough guards during the sporting event.
Speaking at a parliamentary inquiry, company chief executive Nick Buckles admitted the situation has morphed into a “humiliating shambles” and said his company’s reputation has been severely damaged, reported Sky News.
Buckles acknowledged that his company, the second largest security contractor in the world, failed to deploy about 10,000 of the security guards originally promised to oversee the games. Thus far, G4S has supplied 4,200 guards, but Buckles said a total of 7,000 guards will be ready ahead of the start of the event.
“Clearly we regret signing it but now we have got to get on and deliver it,” Buckles said, referring to agreeing to the terms outlined in a contract with the U.K. government—a contact worth 284 million pounds (over $444 million).
Buckles said that the main problem his company faces at the moment is a staffing shortage. But he reiterated, “We’ve managed the contract and we’ve had management on the ground for two years. We still expect to deliver a significant number of staff.”
Keith Vaz, the head of the parliament inquiry, slammed G4S, calling it “incompetent, amateurish, and irresponsible,” according to the Daily Telegraph.
He added that he was also “worried by the fact that [Buckles] can’t be absolutely 100 percent certain that every G4S person will turn up.”
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