Casino dead in the water

PLANS to build a large casino in Newham are "dead in the water", say the Christian Peoples Alliance.

They have pointed to a survey which shows most local people are against such a development, and comments by Prime Minister Gordon Brown last week.

The Town Hall commissioned the survey of 1,025 residents by BMG Research. It showed half were against a casino as part of an entertainment complex and a third in favour.

Twenty-three per cent supported the idea of a stand-alone casino while 57 per cent opposed it.

The poll was published last Wednesday - coincidentally the same day that Mr Brown expressed his reservations on casinos in the House of Commons. The House of Lords voted down the plans in March.

But a Newham Council spokesman said: "The announcement by the Prime Minister about casinos does not alter Newhams position. We have set up an independent commission, chaired by former High Court judge Sir Henry Brooke, to take a view on whether or not it is right to have a casino."

2007-07-25