Casinos in England are set to resume operations on August 1st, after the reopening was approved by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Casino venues across the country have been shut since March 21st after the lockdown measure was imposed as part of the Government’s policy to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus infection.
And while casino patrons in England are impatient to see the venues operating again, the same does not apply for gambling fans in Wales and Scotland, as they are set to remain closed.
The lockdown that forced casinos across the UK to stop operations left thousands of people employed in the industry without their jobs. That is exactly the reason why the trade body representing the country’s gambling industry, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), criticised the Government for some of its measures regarding casinos during the lockdown. As explained by the CEO of the BGC, over 12,000 casino employees lost their jobs during the lockdown, and millions in revenues were wasted.
Now, the Betting and Gaming Council shared that the casinos would have to follow strict safety and health regulations at the time they resume operations. Some casino owners have been worried whether they would be allowed to reopen, especially considering the fact that such a step was rumoured to be planned for July but never happened.
Some Entertainment Venues Were Allowed to Resume Operations in July, but Casinos Remained Closed
Prime Minister Boris Johnson allowed various entertainment venues, including restaurants, pubs and swimming pools, to resume operations in July. Bingo halls and betting shops across the UK were also among the businesses allowed to reopen. Unfortunately for casino operators, the approval did not apply to them.
Now, casino venues will be permitted to open doors to customers as of August 1st. As mentioned above, this would apply only to casinos in England, as the ones in Wales and Scotland are set to remain closed for the time being, despite the reopening of the similar venues in other parts of the county. Under the existing legislation and the country’s devolved parliament system, Wales and Scotland are free to decide for themselves what rules to enact in some of their territories.
Most restrictions were already lifted in England, but they still remain active in the other two counties that have been asked to bring more clarity to their decision to keep many entertainment venues inoperable.
Since the beginning of March and the coronavirus outbreak, health regulators in the UK reported the lowest daily infection rates, which became the reason for why many social distancing measures were relaxed. Furthermore, most establishments were allowed to resume operations.
As a result of the relaxation of the measures, gamblers in England will be able to soon enjoy getting back to their favourite casino games. They, however, will be required to comply with certain social distancing protocols and capacity restrictions that would be in place to make sure further spread of the coronavirus infection is prevented.
- Author
Olivia Cole
