Manchester has been chosen as the venue for the first UK investment in a ’super-casino’ that will hold up to 1,250 unlimited-jackpot fruit machines.

Large casino licences have been granted to Milton Keynes, Newham, Solihull, Kingston-upon-Hull and Southampton among other venues, while Bath and North East Somerset, Luton and Torbay are among the towns granted smaller casino licences. The new venues will represent a massive UK investment in the gambling industry across the country.

Professor Stephen Crow, chairperson of the Independent Casino Advisory Panel, said: “We were won over by how well the Manchester proposal in particular delivered against the full range of requirements set out in the criteria against which the judgements were made.”

He continued: “Manchester also represents a good place to test the social impact of a super-casino and the council’s consultations with other local authorities and relevant bodies gave us confidence on that.

“Manchester has a catchment area for a casino second only to that of London, and it is an area in need of regeneration and fresh UK investment at least as much as any of the others we observed,” he added.

The decision is seen as a major blow to the favourites to win the super-casino licence - Blackpool and the Millennium Dome in London.

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