Blackpool or Manchester for new Super Casino?
Tue ,28/03/2006What have Blackpool and Manchester got in common? They both have towers of about the same height, Blackpool Tower at 518 feet and the Beetham Tower at 515 feet (561 feet including the blade). They both act as ‘gateways’ to the north, attracting tourists through their respective airports, they are both undergoing redevelopment, though Blackpool has yet to embark on its impending transformation.
Another thing in common – as featured on the BBC’s Sunday morning Parliament programme, north west edition – 26 March 06 – is that they are both hoping to attract a ’super-casino’, in fact they are competing with each other. The North West Regional Assembly thinks that Manchester should stand aside, to maximise Blackpool’s chances of winning the super-casino, and EOM agrees.
Manchester is getting a huge amount of economic investment at the moment, while Blackpool – as I witnessed on a recent visit there – looks still to be sorely in need of it. We ought to think regionally, not just on a local authority basis. A super-casino would fit better into Blackpool’s profile and whatever about the ethics of casinos, if councillors in Blackpool want a super-casino, let them have it!