Final Decision on Swindon Mecca Bingo Hall Closure - 04-17-08

April 17 - When the local Mecca bingo hall in Swindon threw a closing party last weekend, it was a sad moment for many of its customers who have been playing at this location for decades.

Town councilors managed to get these bingo fans' hopes up a little during the week when they announced that they were working on a plan to convince Mecca bingo to reopen the bingo hall. However, these hopes were quashed when the Rank Group, owners of Mecca bingo halls across the country,? formally announced that it could not consider keeping the Swindon hall open due to a "discriminatory tax regime" in the United Kingdom.

"The bingo industry is subjected to double taxation by the government in that we pay gross profit tax and VAT," explained a company spokeswoman. "We have been lobbying the government for a long time in an effort to level the playing field. To a large degree this is the reason we have had to close the Mecca bingo hall in Swindon."

Mecca bingo bosses did not stop at making a formal announcement regarding the situation of the Swindon hall, however. They also sent a scything letter to the government, addressed to Prime Minister Gordon Brown himself, as well as Chancellor Alistair Darling.

"The Mecca Bingo club in Swindon employs 10 people from the local area; those jobs are now lost," read the letter. "It provides a warm, friendly and fun social experience for thousands of people from the area, many of whom are women; that amenity will now disappear. At least six licensed bingo clubs in Great Britain have closed since March 12, 2008 when the government chose to ignore the bingo industry's calls for a fair deal in the budget. It seems likely that many more will close by the end of the year unless you take action now."

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