NGO, residents call on Senglea council to oppose betting shop

Conservationist NGO Flimkien ghal-Ambjent Ahjar said residents of Senglea are disappointed that their local council has failed to present a formal objection to the application for a betting shop in a historic palazzo on the main road.

FAA said the betting shop's location, which is to be decided Tuesday by MEPA, would put in full view of children on their way to school, the Church as well as the premises for the religious society of the Legion of Mary.

Flimkien ghal Ambjent Ahjar and some residents objected to the application at MEPA last month, on the grounds that it contravenes the guidelines as to what commercial outlets are allowed in open conservation areas.

"Efforts to improve the social fabric of Cottonera are beginning to bear fruit and the future could be a bright one if cultural tourism were to be developed to the benefit of the residents. Allowing this application for a gaming room in an old historical building would open the doors to many others and would effectively nullify all the official policies and programmes related to social regeneration and the upgrading of Urban Conservation Areas," FAA spokesperson Astrid Vella said.

FAA said gaming rooms are contrary to the promotion of 'good neighbourliness' inherent in the Grand Harbour Local Plan, which encourages small-scale retail space in order to keep towns and villages alive.

"The change-of-use from class-4 shop into a class-9 gambling hall would represent a loss of retail shopping space and be contrary to policy GL18 of the area plan for Senglea," Vella said.

The FAA is contending that research shows that slot-machine establishments do not target those with disposable incomes but those who cannot afford to waste their income. "Gambling shops cost the government three times as much in terms of social support structures as the government earns from the gaming industry and given that many people in the Three Cities depend on income support to survive, this sudden interest in opening so many money-squandering establishments can only suggest that this area is being targeted by this unscrupulous industry to the detriment of the communities as a whole," Vella said.

"Gambling shops do not create any employment to speak of, and when gambling merely transfers Euros from one pocket to another without creating a tangible product we are made the poorer. The more people gamble to acquire money, the poorer society is and the more social problems are created.

"The Cospicua mayor has successfully been able to stop 6 applications for gaming rooms in his city. The message is loud and clear that gaming rooms are not welcome in Cospicua."