Casino Giants Warn a Development Cap Could Backfire

LONDON-International casino giants have warned that the government is unlikely to see euro 7.2 billion ($9.3 billion) of investment into the UK if ministers restrict the number of regional casinos in Britain to 10. Ministers are expected to unveil details of the cap tomorrow when the bill is scrutinized in parliamentary committee. The move to restrict the growth of Las Vegas-style casinos is in response to a massive public and parliamentary outcry over the prospect of large numbers of big casinos.

An amendment to the bill is likely to result in a pilot scheme that sees up to 10 regional casinos permitted in the first three years of the new legislation. But the gaming industry fears that the actual number may be as low as four.

“In the government’s own estimates, up to £5 billion could be invested and 80,000 jobs created if the market in the UK is liberalized,” says Lloyd Nathan, the managing director of Europe for MGM Mirage, among the the world’s largest gaming groups. “A cap would significantly impact those figures.”