The UK’s Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has announced that casinos in England can reopen in a month, on July 4.* The country’s casinos have been closed to help slow the spread of the coronavirus since March 23.
The government actually set July 4 as a target date last month for the third and final phase of its reopening plan, which includes “hospitality and leisure facilities,” but it was not until now that the BGC gave its own stamp of approval.
As is the case with casinos around the world, properties will be required to implement scores of safety measures to protect customers and staff. Guests must use hand sanitizer when entering a casino and when arriving at or leaving a gaming table. It is unclear if facemasks are required, though, as the BGC simply says, “face coverings will be made available to customers on request” when mentioning that there will table capacity limits in place. Facemasks certainly seem like they should be required if they are going to go through all of the other safety precautions like enforcing social distancing.
Staff must monitor electronic gaming machines and sanitize them after each use. ATMs will also have to be cleaned at least once per hour.
Other measures, like only allowing one guest into the building at a time and installing plexiglass barriers where possible, are also listed in the BGC’s announcement.
“However, for some in the high-end casino sector the relaxation of social distancing measures are not enough to enable them to return to business,” the BGC noted. “With the vast majority of their customers being overseas tourists, travel restrictions will need to ease before there is any prospect of their doors reopening.”
BGC chief executive Michael Dugher highlighted the importance of casinos to the UK’s economy, both via tax revenue and employment. He also pointed out that during the COVID-19 pandemic, many casinos distributed their food to relief efforts so that it would not go to waste.
Dugher concluded:
We know that the casino sector faces some very tough times ahead and the threat posed by covid to many businesses won’t go away quickly. That’s why we would also urge the Government to continue to be flexible in their approach to the hospitality and leisure industry as its furlough scheme is wound down. Even though they will be ready to open their doors on 4 July, casinos will still be forced to operate at a reduced capacity for some time to come because of the need to maintain social distancing. We would urge the Chancellor to keep being flexible and continue providing support as the country emerges from the pandemic.
Across the pond, many casinos in the United States have already reopened or about to do so. Louisiana, Florida, and Mississippi have been up and running for a little while already, with some casinos even spreading poker games. Nevada casinos open their doors on Thursday, while Meadows Racetrack & Casino in Pennsylvania announced it is reopening next Tuesday.
*I was going to make a joke about Independence Day and something something England lost the Revolutionary War, but I couldn’t think of anything good.
