The right to build the UK's first Las Vegas-style 'super casino' will
be fought out between 27 local authorities, it has been revealed.
Only one can host the "regional casino" and the Casino Advisory Panel
is "sifting and thinning" entries, which include Glasgow, Cardiff and
Blackpool. Forty-one other local authorities applied for one of the
eight large and eight small casinos. Several groups warn a super casino
will increase gambling addiction.
And some Opposition MPs have urged the government to pilot one
regional casino so its regenerative and social impact could be
assessed. Shadow culture secretary Hugo Swire said the number of
regional casinos should not be increased to fill a "black hole" in
the government's finances.
'Difficult decisions'
Professor Stephen Crow, chairman of the advisory panel, said
drawing up a shortlist could take six to eight weeks.
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CASINO PLANS
Regional casino - minimum customer area of 5,000 sq m
Regional casino can have 1,250 unlimited jackpot slot
machines
Large casinos -minimum customer area of 1,000 sq m
Large casinos can have up to 150 slot machines with
maximum jackpot of £4,000
Small casinos - minimum customer area of 750 sq m
Small casinos can have up to 80 slot machines with
maximum jackpot of £4,000
One regional and 8 large casinos can offer bingo
All three types of casino can offer betting
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"These proposals represent a lot of hard work by the people that
have prepared them, and, very often, a lot of difficult
decision-making also," he said. "They all deserve nothing less than
fair and thorough examination."
He added that after the initial evaluation, selected proposals
will be given further examination over the summer months. Blackpool
has been seen as the front-runner in the battle to win the super
casino licence. Several authorities have applied for more than one
type of casino and said they will settle for a lower category to
secure a site in their area.
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell has said the large and small
casinos should be built in a range of locations, including inner
city centres, edge of town developments and seaside resorts.
However, plans for a super casino have received stiff opposition
from several groups concerned about its impact.
Major Bill Cochrane, of the Salvation Army, said: "The Salvation
Army believes that wherever the first super casino is built, it is
likely to lead to a rise in problem gambling, which is far too high
a price to pay for economic regeneration.
"Research from other countries shows that super casinos can lead
to a range of social problems, including increased debt, loss of
employment, family breakdown and increased crime."
He added the group remained unconvinced about the amount of
research by local authorities on the potential social impact of such
a casino. Shadow culture secretary Hugo Swire said the impact of a
super casino on problem gambling and its social effects were
unknown.
"This is why the government must stick to its promise, to a pilot
project of one regional casino, so that we can properly assess both
the regenerative and the social impacts of regional casinos.
"We discovered in the Budget that Gordon Brown expects to get an
extra £95m over three years from just one super casino, so it
doesn't take a mathematician to work out that another 8 or 10
casinos would go a long way to filling Gordon's black hole. "
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk_politics/4876530.stm
Published: 2006/04/04 16:11:06 GMT
