UK Super-casino Verdict Due

Monday, 29 January 2007

The winner in the race to host Britain's first Las Vegas-style casino will be announced tomorrow, with Blackpool or Greenwich tipped to win.
The five members of the Casino Advisory Panel (CAP) will on Tuesday give Tessa Jowell, culture secretar

The winner in the race to host Britain's first Las Vegas-style casino will be announced tomorrow, with Blackpool or Greenwich tipped to win.
The five members of the Casino Advisory Panel (CAP) will on Tuesday give Tessa Jowell, culture secretary, their recommendations for siting the one regional or super-casino, eight large-sized and eight small-sized casinos.
The seven shortlisted cities or districts are Greenwich in London, Blackpool, Newcastle, Manchester, Sheffield, Cardiff and Glasgow.
Panel members, who have been sitting on their decision for nearly a month, are thought to be impressed by most of the bids. Deep Sagar, a member of the panel, said, 'There will be some sort of analysis of all the proposals that were shortlisted.'
Some believe that Greenwich is too politically tainted by adverse media reports on its bid over links between John Prescott, deputy prime minister, and Philip Anschutz, the US entertainments mogul and head of AEG.
Blackpool City Council has vigorously lobbied for the Lancashire town to win the race, hoping that new a super-casino complex will bring much-needed regeneration and employment to the region.
John O'Reilly of Ladbrokes, although keen on a Blackpool win, accepts that while the super-casino will be a big UK attraction the idea of a flood of punters arriving is overstated.
'I suspect it will take some time for the consumer to be attracted to it,' he said. 'The reality is that for most folk it will be an occasional visit for a long weekend and a bit of fun.'



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