THE GOVERNMENT has signalled unexpectedly dramatic restrictions on the number of new casinos that will result from the controversial overhaul of the gambling laws.

Tessa Jowell has bowed to pressure from anti-gambling campaigners and is understood to be preparing to limit the number of new “large” and “small” casinos to eight apiece.

Such a move would stop a rash of casinos springing up on high streets across Britain, but will anger the British gaming industry, which is to be denied the massive expansion that it had expected.

The original legislation would have allowed an unlimited number of large casinos, those categorised as 1,500sq m with 150 slot machines, and small casinos, those below 750 sq m with a maximum of 80 slots. Their machines would have a prize limit of £2,000.

Yesterday’s leak follows the announcement of a cap of eight on “regional” or super-casinos, which are the only premises to have the controversial £1 million slot machines. Ministers have repeatedly hinted that some form of restriction on smaller outlets was inevitable once it was agreed to limit the number of super-casinos.

A formal announcement is expected to be made next week during standing committee, but the new policy has yet to be formally approved by Cabinet committee.

The Government hopes that the Gambling Bill will become law before the general election, probably in May.

Yesterday’s change completes an embarrassing Government U-turn on gambling liberalisation, which began the year as a market-determined free-for-all but ended as a cautious, tightly controlled experiment.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport was forced into the climbdown after widespread fears that more casinos would lead to an explosion in problem gambling.

Casino operators from around the world had been preparing to enter into the British market in large numbers.

As late as October The Times revealed that 172 casino planning applications had been made — five times the Government’s highest estimates.

These revealed plans for a casino on virtually every high street in the United Kingdom, with seventeen in London, four in Birmingham and four in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

But yesterday’s leak suggested the total number of new casinos of all categories that would follow the Gambling Bill would be just 24.

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