Bloomsbury may not have been the first part of London to acquire a formal garden square but it was the first to have one named as such when one was laid out in 1660. The residential area became fashionable in the 17th and 18th centuries and was made famous by the literary Bloomsbury Group at the turn of the 20th century. A plan by Thistle Hotel to open a casino has not been well received by present residents.

Yesterday planning permission was granted to turn a former bureau de change into a casino. Despite protests from some residents that a casino would alter the village nature of Bloomsbury and lead to disturbance and crime, Thistle Hotels is adamant that a casino on its premises would not disturb hotel guests, let alone neighbouring residents. The casino would be an upmarket operation with limited clientele transported to and from the premises.

Thistle must still get approval for a gaming licence from Camden Council. Opponents of the scheme say that if the hotel had been in nearby Hampstead, and not Camden, the project never would have obtained planning permission. The proposal was only approved by Camden planning department after getting the deciding vote of the planning chairwoman.

The largest number of new casino licences approved in the last two years under the old Gaming Act has gone to BIL Gaming Operations UK Limited, a 100% owned subsidiary of Singapore listed BIL International, which owns the Thistle hotel chain and the famous Clermont casino in London. The company plans to open casinos in its hotels around Britain. (E-03.23.07)

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