Casinos in England set to reopen August 1

Casinos will need to adhere to strict rules when it comes to social distancing and public safety

Casinos are some of the last establishments in England allowed to reopen but finally their time has come with 1 August set as the big date.

Casinos will need to adhere to strict rules on social distancing and public safety like sanitising roulette chips before and after use. Customers are also limited to play at one table and must sanitise their hands before and after. Casinos in the rest of the UK will have to wait for their own reopening dates to be confirmed. 

The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) which has urged the government to overturn its stance on several occasions and highly praised the new decision to finally reopen.  

Michael Dugher, Betting and Gaming Council chief executive said: “After four long months of lockdown, it’s fantastic to see casinos will reopen safely for business again on 1 August. I am delighted that they can now play their part in supporting the recovery of the tourism and hospitality sector.” and Dugher added: “BGC casino members went the extra mile to meet strict COVID guidelines some weeks ago but were left in the dark as to when they would be allowed to reopen. I’d like to thank DCMS Secretary of State Oliver Dowden, Minister Nigel Hiddleston and the many cross-party MPs who supported us and worked hard to secure a reopening date.”  

The trade body further called for an end to the uncertainty for the 2,000 employees who work in the rest of the UK in Scottish and Welsh casinos who still have no end to lockdown in sight. 

“The uncertainty has been awful for the 12,000 people who work in casinos in England and we now call on Scottish and Welsh governments to follow suit and permit casinos to reopen without delay,” Dugher added. “The devolved administrations owe it to the 2,000 employees who work in Scottish and Welsh casinos to end this uncertainty and help them return to work.” 

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