06 October 2021
A senior manager of the parent company behind a new 24-hour slot machine arcade in Palmers Green has has said that he is sure that visitors to the 'entertainment centre' will be as excited as he is about the new venue. However, many local residents are less than enthusiastic about the opening, which followed a widely supported but ultimately unsuccessful campaign for the withdrawal of the arcade's operating licence.
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18 June 2021
Following the last-minute cancellation by the council of the scheduled review of the Merkur Slots gambling licence, the StopPGMerkurSlots campaign is calling on Palmers Green residents and children to 'stamp their feet' between 3.30 and 5.30 on Friday afternoon outside the shop where the 24-hour slot arcade is due to open
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16 June 2021
Leaders of the StopPGMerkurSlots campaign have expressed anger and disappointment after Enfield Council cancelled the review, scheduled for this morning, into the granting of a licence for a 24-hour slot-machine arcade in the centre of Palmers Green. The council's change of mind came about after it received a legal challenge and was advised that it could not be confident of defending the challenge and that there might be 'financial consequences'
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09 June 2021
Enfield's licensing committee will be reviewing the Merkur Slots licence in a virtual meeting at 10am on Wednesday 16th June.
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29 April 2021
StopPGMerkurSlots have provided some updated information about their campaign against the opening of 24-hour gambling arcade in the centre of Palmers Green.
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21 April 2021
The campaign against a 24-hour slot machine arcade planned for Green Lanes is moving into a new phase, following success in applying for a review by the council of the 'bingo' licence that was granted to Merkur Slots in December. The review will be discussed by Enfield Licensing Committee on 16th June. Ahead of the review there will be a four-week period - 21st April to 18th May - during which interested parties can make further representations.
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14 April 2021
As they continue to work on finalising their application for a review of the gambling licence issued to Merkur Slots, leading activists from the campaign group StopPGMerkurSlots will this week be asking for advice from the chair of an all party parliamentary group (APPG).
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07 April 2021
The StopPGMerkurSlots campaign has been continuing to collect evidence for a review of a licence for a new branch of the Merkur Slots gambling arcade chain planned for Green Lanes. The campaign has the support of local councillors and the council leader and is being assisted by council officers, but as a review would be a lengthy process (nine to ten weeks) it may not be completed before the new arcade opens.
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31 March 2021
The group campaigning against a 24-hour gambling venue in Palmers Green says it has gathered substantial evidence to submit for a review of the application licence.
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28 March 2021
On 23rd March Enfield Southgate MP Bambos Charalambous presented a petition to parliament requesting a review of gambling premises licences granted during the coronavirus lockdown, citing the case of the granting of a licence for a 24-hour gambling licence for a new branch of Merkur Slots in Palmers Green.
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24 March 2021
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 gambling legislation.
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18 March 2021
The residents' group campaigning against the opening of a new Merkur Slots 24-hour gambling arcade will be meeting virtually on 18th March to discuss the way forward. They will be joined by councillors from Palmers Green ward, officers from the council's licensing team and, if he can make it, by Enfield Southgate MP Bambos Charalambous. Council leader Nesil Caliskan has also been invited, but to date has not responded. Written advice obtained by Bambos Charalambous appears to suggest that the granting of the license for the premises was entirely in order. The group is asking residents to write to the MP who is leading the cross-party review of the present Gambling Act 2005.
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10 March 2021
As the number of signatures on the Stop the Slots petition exceeds 4,100, the residents behind the campaign against a new gambling arcade in the the heart of Palmers Green are growing impatient about the lack of action on the part of Enfield Council. The cabinet member for licensing and regulatory services says that gambling premises do not fit the council's vision for town centres, but Merkur Slots say that they are a 'passionate supporter of high street regeneration'.
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03 March 2021
The online petition opposing a new gambling arcade in the centre of Palmers Green has now attracted just short of 4000 signatures in less than two weeks. The group of residents who first raised the alarm have christened their campaign Stop the Slot! and are continuing to question Enfield Council about the circumstances in which a 'bingo premises licence' was issued at the start of year to Merkur Slots to allow them to open a new arcade near the former Store 21 shop in Green Lanes. They will be asking all petition signatories to contact their councillors and will be giving interviews to local papers.
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24 February 2021
A campaign opposing the opening of a 24-hour gambling arcade in Palmers Green has gained substantial support from local residents. By Tuesday evening, four days after its launch, nearly 2700 people had signed a petition to Enfield Council calling for a review of the gambling licence granted last month to a new branch of Merkur Slots in Green Lanes. The campaign has also attracted the backing of Enfield Southgate MP Bambos Charalambous, who has stated that he is "appalled" at the plans and has raised questions about the spread of high street gambling with the culture secretary.
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17 February 2021
In July last year a trade journal serving the "coin-op amusement, casino and igaming industries" reported that a German company was opening a "rash of new UK arcades" using the Merkur Slots brand name. It now turns out that one of the town centres where the rash will be breaking out is Palmers Green, and some locals are not at all "amused" about the prospect of the new arcade.
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