Birmingham Local Conservatives seek probe for Commonwealth Games 2026 return as Victoria cancels in Australia

With Victoria in Australia pulling out of hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games this morning, Birmingham Local Conservatives are calling for talks to discuss if the games could return to Brum.

The party highlighted how it had previously called for Birmingham to be awarded two games to be hosted in the city in a row, to offset some of the costs of hosting it previously at short notice.

The further stressed how Birmingham already has much of the infrastructure needed to host the Commonwealth Games – and has shown that it is a city capable of hosting such an event successfully. They claimed that, as a result, the cost of hosting the Games would be reduced in Birmingham compared to other cities.

“You could even choose to base the games in Birmingham permanently, as the Commonwealth City, which would also increase the investment case for funding a full world-class metro and underground rail system in Birmingham and the surrounding region,” a spokesperson for the Birmingham Local Conservatives said.

The party heralded the Commonwealth Games model implemented for Birmingham 2022 in which university accommodation was used instead of building athletes’ villages. And it claimed that, were the games to be based in Birmingham permanently, it would ensure the continuation of the games.

However the Birmingham Local Conservatives also stressed that that financial aid from the government would likely be needed. The party is now calling on Birmingham City Council to bring together stakeholders and “make a united case for Birmingham as the Commonwealth City to be the permanent home to the games for the foreseeable future”.

Leader of the Opposition, and Birmingham Local Conservatives, Cllr Robert Alden (Con, Erdington) said: “It would be fantastic to see the Commonwealth Games return to Birmingham. We’re calling on the City Council to bring together the Commonwealth Games Federation, West Midlands Mayor Andy Street and the combined authority, other regional leaders and the Government to assess the feasibility of Birmingham and the region hosting the Games again, and even being the permanent base for the Commonwealth Games.

“We know this would require a huge effort, and clearly would require outside support to again manage the budgets given the Council’s current financial mess, however the opportunity for the city is huge and should be investigated. Residents should not miss out on the opportunity because of the failure of the Birmingham Labour Administration to be able to balance the books”.

Cllr Ewan Mackey (Con, Sutton Roughley), Deputy Leader of Birmingham Local Conservatives, added, “You could feel the energy in the air during the last Games, and undoubtedly that was partly due to the energy the Games brought to the City, but it was also due to the energy that Birmingham residents and businesses brought to the Games.

“No one has done the Commonwealth Games better than Birmingham. If financially feasible, then this is an opportunity the City should jump on and so the Council must investigate the feasibility of bringing the games home to Birmingham again. And save the future of the Commonwealth Games”.