Plans Unveiled for Yarmouth Casino
Great Yarmouth
At least four casino operators are hoping to obtain a lucrative gambling license in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. The council has announced plans to advertise the license and early bidders include Albert Jones, boss of the Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach, as well as Patrick Duffy, the owner of the nearby Palace Casino. According to the Great Yarmouth Mercury, Jones has already obtained planning permission and wishes to build a casino resort – complete with a large entertainment complex – near Pleasure Beach. It’s believed Duffy hopes to use the license to “re-shape” his Palace Casino.
Both bidders have suggested that their proposed casinos will form part of larger resorts, which will offer restaurants, hotels and cinemas. Chris Skinner, of Great Yarmouth council, has suggested that the closing date for casino applications will be the 31st of January, 2011. In March, the council aims to “have dealt with stage one issues”, which include ensuring that bidders “meet basic legal requirements”. It’s believed that the winner of the bidding process will be announced in September 2011.
In 2007, the Labour government granted Great Yarmouth, a "large" casino license. Other areas which received large casino licenses include Hull, Newham, Solihull and Southampton. So far, only Newham, Solihull and Great Yarmouth have announced their interest in opening the bidding process for the licenses. At the time of licensing, which saw Manchester obtain a “super casino” license, the then culture secretary Tessa Jowell proposed that "Las Vegas is not coming to Great Britain... British casinos will be subject to new controls, which will be the strictest in the world".
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