RESIDENTS in Weymouth and Portland were today assured that they will not shoulder the cost of the 2012 Olympics.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council maintains that they have no plans to raise council tax to fund the Sailing events.

The authority insists that even though there may be council tax rises in London to pay for the games, this will not be the case in Weymouth and Portland.

Culture secretary Tessa Jowell has suggested that there is no set limit on council tax rises in London to fund the 2012 Olympics.

She said that although the basic increase was pegged at about £20 a year and a 'rigorous' budget was being followed, there could be no guarantee it would stay that low.

However, the main cost of staging the sailing events in Weymouth and Portland will be met by the London Olympic Games Committee (Logoc) and there will also be a significant amount of funding from the National Lottery.

A spokesman from Weymouth and Portland Borough Council also said that some of the money raised from increases in London council tax might be used to fund Olympic sailing events. She added: "No additional council tax will be raised locally to host the games.

"That has never been our intention."

Meanwhile, Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy has welcomed the appointment of Olympic venue specialist HOK. This means that detailed plans may soon be under way.

Olympic committee chairman Seb Coe announced in a speech that HOK had been chosen to produce technical briefs for the Olympic venues, which include Weymouth and Portland.

HOK has previously been involved in designing the new Wembley Stadium, Cardiff's Millennium Stadium and the new Ascot racecourse.

John Tweed, development director at the academy, said: "Clearly, it's important that we achieve a good legacy for the area from the Olympics."