Casino plan for city still on the cards

Casino plans for Bath are likely to get back on track in the next few weeks.

The Government is expected to confirm that Bath remains on a list of eight cities across the UK earmarked for a small casino.

Plans for 16 new casinos across the country and a supercasino in Manchester were thrown out by the House of Lords in March last year.

Now the Government is reviewing the proposals and Bath MP Don Foster said a decision on whether to give the go-ahead for eight small and eight large casinos was likely to be made by the end of February.

Bath would join Skegness, Stranraer, Luton, Scarborough, Swansea, Torbay and Wolverhampton as locations of casinos of 7,500 sq ft with 80 machines and GBP 4,000 in prizes.

Mr Foster said he had been assured there would be wide-scale public consultation when a firm proposal for a casino in Bath had been put forward. He added that he would not support the plans unless this consultation was included.

Mr Foster added that apart from the planning application „we need to look at the issues of gambling addiction, social responsibility, security and contribution to the economy of the city“.

Mr Foster met Culture Secretary James Purnell earlier this week to discuss the case of a casino in Bath.

B&NES Council has drawn up a list of possible sites for a casino, but no operator has been finalised, and planning consent would be needed.

A spokesman for the Grosvenor Casinos chain said a small casino providing up to 100 jobs in Bath would be viable.