Tony Blair has rejected calls for the appointment of an Olympics minister to oversee London's "strong" 2012 bid.

Addressing journalists in Downing Street the prime minister said he believed the mechanics of the UK bid were strong enough to secure the games.

Ahead of a presentation from bid chief Lord Coe to the Cabinet next week, Blair said he was full square behind the effort following a visit to last month's Athens games.

"What we have now got to do is go out and show people that the country as a whole is absolutely behind it and that what we will achieve by having the Olympics in London is not just a good Olympics for three weeks but a lasting sporting legacy for the country," he said.