It had been predicted that the UK's Casino Advisory Panel (CAP) would shortlist twelve local authorities as contenders for Britain's Vegas casino prototype, but when the list was published yesterday only eight of the twenty-seven applicants had been named. This has caused consternation and dismay in cities such as Leeds in Yorkshire, particularly as nearby Sheffield is through to the next stage of assessment. Those local councils that have lost out are likely to commence lobbying for further consideration and for more than one regional casino to be built.

It is ironic that after all the kerfuffle in Birmingham over the Council's choice of the National Exhibition Centre casino project over one at Birmingham City Football Club, the Birmingham/Solihull application has not been selected. Neither has Coventry's Ricoh Arena in the same region, which had a strong case for being able to be operational earlier than any other scheme and therefore bringing forward social impact studies that could open the possibility of other regions being granted licences for super casinos. It appears that the Midlands has been overlooked completely, with preference given to London (Greenwich and Brent) and the North (Newcastle, Blackpool, Manchester and Sheffield) plus Glasgow in Scotland and Cardiff in Wales.

The final CAP choice of location is not expected to be announced until December. When it is, it could just be the start of further arguments. Some projects, such as the one in Greenwich (for the renamed Dome), have already tied their flag to certain operators - Kerzner International - but the city of Sheffield has competing projects from Sun International in the Don Valley and Las Vegas Sands at Sheffield United F.C. Should Blackpool be selected, a front runner from Day 1 and persistently rumoured to be the preferred choice of government, it may leave many of Britain's Councils wondering why they entered into the costly process of submitting proposals to CAP. (E-05.25.06)

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