Palmers Green residents campaigning against the planned Merkur Slots 24-hour arcade have been told that it will be possible to review the granting of a gambling licence without waiting for the venue to open first. The campaign is being supported by all three Palmers Green ward councillors, the council leader and the local MP, who has raised the matter in parliament, but a key obstacle is the fact that current law makes it difficult for councils to control the proliferation of gambling establishments - which is why residents are being urged to submit evidence to a review of national gambling legislation.
The welcome news that the licence can be reviewed came during an online meeting between StopPGslots members and the PG councillors, two senior council officers (the head of regulatory services and the head of licensing), a representative of council leader Nesil Caliskan, the chair of the premises committee, Cllr George Savva, and Enfield Southgate MP Bambos Charalambous. The campaigners aim to submit their appeal within the next fortnight and it will be supported by the PG councillors, the MP and the CAPE forum.
A successful appeal will not be an easy matter. The law stipulates that the concerns raised must relate to the following objectives:
- preventing gambling from being a source of crime and disorder
- ensuring gambling is conducted in a fair and open way
- protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.
Following the meeting, Wendy Sands from StopPGslots updated the residents who have signed the petition (now more than 4000), letting them know about the review and urging them to contact the MP who is leading the review into the Gambling Act 2005 (the update was also published on the petition page and includes details of who to write to and a suggested letter template). Individuals can also make their own submissions to the gambling review, expressing their frustration about the limit on powers to control the spread of gambling premises. Enfield Council itself will be submitting evidence along similar lines.
The StopPGslots campaigners have a busy few weeks ahead of them. As well as gathering the information they need for the review, they will be asking residents to write to the owners of Merkur Slots to make it plain that they are not welcome in Palmers Green.