Arena Leisure prepares Wolverhampton casino bid
9th March, 2008
Racecourse operator Arena Leisure has confirmed it is putting together a consortium to bid for one of the UK's 16 new regional casinos.
The government recently scrapped plans to develop Las Vegas-style supercasinos around the UK after a policy gulf emerged between former prime minister Tony Blair and incumbent Gordon Brown.
Mr Brown rejected his predecessor's arguments that large-scale casino gambling sites in underdeveloped areas can play an important role in spurring on regeneration - opting instead for the vastly watered-down approach of building 16 smaller regional casinos.
In an interview with the FT, Arena chief executive Mark Elliott outlined his company's plans to develop one such site in the West Midlands city of Wolverhampton. He said that construction of the £25 million development would begin as soon as next year if plans are approved.
"We will shortly confirm a casino operator partner in time to compete for the licence," Mr Elliott remarked to the newspaper.
The company has previously won planning permission for hotels in Wolverhampton, Doncaster and Lingfield Park and presently operates one quarter of all UK horseracing fixtures.
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