Gambling: Tessa is either an imbecile or a liar

...or possibly both.

A super casino in the proposed form is heat but not light. Let us just dispell some utter fallacies (polite for lies repeated by idiots as truth).

No real economic activity will be created by casinos. All it will do is absorb money that would othrewise be spent on other things. Any activity, if sitting like a sack of rotting spuds infront of an electronic money hoover can be called 'activity', will be non-productive. Nothing of value will be created either tangible in the form of products to sell locally or abroad, or intangible by improving the efficiency of the economy as a whole (e.g. as banking or insurance can). Don't even try and excuse this by the creation of "jobs" - that is just pathetic. Don't even try and excuse this by implying a tourist trade. A few thousand low paid staff can in no way offset the vast profits being creamed off. If anything it will drag the economy down as people are distracted by the entire fraud of a "win".

Wealth will be created, but the overwealming majority of it will be exported to the US by the parent companies running the casinos, thus draining this country of wealth and weakening still further the balance of payments. Oh, and Gordon gets his cut. What a squalid creature he is.

This is aside from the almost certain damage to the fabric of society and to the lives of the poor suckers who will end up shackling themselves to the machines.

An MP (or was it a Councillor) tried to dismiss Manchester as "a few slot machines". How utterly disingenuous. Such a statement is so close to a lie you could not get a cigarette paper between.

Reform the laws regarding the operation of existing casinos, fine, but I see no evidence to the contrary to the effect that it is just a cover operation to enable certain parties to set up shop in the UK and fleece the population. This country has so many issues to resolve and so many things that can be done to improve the lot of the population but this government fiddles away Parliamentary time on gambling. It is an utter disgrace. I expect the Manchester Casino project will bring all sorts of "regeneration monies" to be paid by us, spent by the Council or some such QANGO with their mates unlikely not to benefit so that the casino owners can make even more money so as to take even more of it out of the country, while the Government takes its cut.

I call that a racket, but what else do you expect from supporting gambling?

If they want Super Casinos for the "benefits" - i.e. jobs and tourism, then license them as not-for-profit organisations with a share going to the lottery fund. This will expose the true motivations of the Government.

The only thing I can see is that it will undermine the Rule of Law in Manchester or wherever the casino is built, while impoverishing the country as a whole due to capital outflows, with the Government as a complicit co-conspiritor and lackey.