The British Olympic Committee has already confirmed their interest in bringing the games to Britain in 2012.

Speaking on BBC Five Live, Livingstone said: "Tony Blair has to decide some time this summer if this is something he wants to throw the weight of the government behind."

And he confirmed that he had spoken to the government about bidding for the games.

"The government is seriously considering it.

"Clearly they don't want to rush into something that's going to fail, but I think by the end of the summer there will be a clear indication of where they're going."

Livingstone feels that there are strong parallels to be drawn with Barcelona. When the Catalan city was awarded the 1992 games it was the trigger for redevelopment of a large area of the city.

"Barcelona had their waterfront, we've got the Thames gateway," he said.

"There's an incredible amount of land ready to go and needing regeneration to take London out eastwards. So we could be a success like Barcelona."

And Livingstone believes there's one factor that could help swing the Prime Minister's decision on whether or not to campaign for the Olympics.

He said: "In 2012 Tony Blair will be 59-years-old. What a great way to end the longest premiership of recent times."