Bingo Halls To Take Casino Gamble
Few would have bet on former Scotland rugby captain Andy Irvine’s decision to join bingo hall operator Carlton Clubs as a non-executive director. Despite recent attempts to update its image, bingo is still seen as a repetitive form of entertainment played by mature ladies in crumbling former cinemas. But with new gambling laws expected in this year’s Queen’s speech, Irvine could be on to something.
Carlton is the UK’s third biggest chain of bingo halls, and its chief executive Peter Perrins is well aware of the benefits as well as the pitfalls which deregulation will bring.
All the signs are that gambling in all its forms is about to become more mainstream. Next month, Glasgow’s licensing committee will consider the first of an expected stream of applications to open casinos in the city.
The £8m upmarket gambling den proposed by London Clubs International already has planning permission. The company would be surprised if its Springfield Quay development - just across the Clyde from the Daily Record’s offices - was knocked back at this late stage.
Other applications include a proposal by US group Harrah’s for a gambling hall at the former Esso oil terminal in Bowling, Dunbartonshire.
Property group Peel Holdings has plans for a casino at Glasgow Harbour and US billionaire Sheldon Adelson has said he is keen to set up a Las Vegas-style UK casino at Ibrox.
LCI’s Rendezvous club may seem more humdrum than other projects, but the company says privately that many of the others are kite-flying exercises.
But Glasgow is not alone in attracting interest from the gambling industry. About 240 casinos have been proposed across the UK, adding to the 126 in operation.
Clearly something big is happening. Part of it may be down to changing social attitudes to gambling, but what the big players are really interested in is the forthcoming gambling bill.
It is expected that casinos will be able to advertise, punters will be able to play without joining the club 24 hours beforehand and casinos will not be restricted to certain areas.
The effects of this change on the gaming industry were spelt out in a recent report compiled by KPMG, the accountancy firm, for the British Beer and Pubs Association.
KPMG estimates UK casino revenues will triple to £2.5bn by 2009, almost overtaking the National Lottery as the country’s favourite flutter.
Despite the growth in casino income, gambling revenues will rise by just 20% to £10.8bn - so somebody will have to lose out. The biggest losers will be football pools (down 62%), bingo halls (down 30%) and gaming machines (down between 10% and 20%).
That change could be catastrophic for traditional bingo halls - as KPMG’s report notes: "The migration of even a minority of a bingo hall’s customer base could imperil the viability of that bingo hall." According to the Bingo Association, 138 out of the UK’s 700 clubs will convert to casinos, while 85 will simply close.
All of which makes this seem like a strange time to float a company which runs bingo halls - but there are a few positive signs. Limits on stakes, prizes and rollovers will be lifted, and the 24-hour ‘cooling-off period’ will no longer apply.
The real opportunity for bingo hall operators may be to embrace deregulation, and introduce casino games and sports betting to their clubs, or convert completely to the casino format.
Carlton will not be left behind, according to Brian King, its operations director. "I'm not saying that all our clubs will convert to casinos, but it is an opportunity," he said.
Carlton, whose flotation plan was revealed in Scotland on Sunday on May 2, last week confirmed it expected a valuation of about £40m.
For now, the company plans to build or buy a club every year or two. It is about to open two halls - at a total cost of £11m - in Inverness and Dunfermline.
