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City's fresh bid for super-casino
Message was posted: 03:16 May 27th, 2006

User: LadyHoldem Rank: WCD Admin Casino Gold: 7305CG Contributor rating: 19375 Status: Offline

The government has been urged to choose Coventry as the site for Britain's first super casino. It comes two days after Peugeot announced it was to close its Ryton plant near the city with the loss of 2,300 jobs. Coventry City Council said a £113m scheme at the Ricoh Arena already included a plan for a small casino. That is being built under existing laws but there is land available for a much bigger complex. Leader Ken Taylor said the plan could bring in 1,800 jobs if successful. 'Obvious choice' He said: "The experience of Coventry shows that, in the right context and properly managed, a regional casino can provide a step-change in the level and quality of regeneration to a whole region. "Coventry and other areas of the country have a once in a lifetime opportunity to create a step change in their local economies." He said the city was the "obvious choice" for the pilot as it had the most advanced casino site in the UK and was the only city capable of opening a regional complex in 2007. John McGuigan, director of regeneration at the council, said: "Coventry's economy has never been as strong as it is at the moment. There is £6.5bn of investment coming into the city at the moment. Las Vegas "The economy is changing. Thirty years ago, 55% of the people in this city worked in manufacturing and that's now down to 18%. Our future is in looking forward as opposed to backwards." Production at the PSA Peugeot-Citroen plant in Ryton is due to end in July 2007, with the loss of 2,300 jobs. Some 27 councils are bidding for the chance to host Britain's first Las Vegas style super casino. Another 41 have applied for licences to build smaller ones, but only 16 will be successful under Government plans.