Hilton rolls the dice again

MORE than 25 years after Ladbrokes was forced out of the casino business over a betting scandal, its owner, Hilton Group, has regained its licence.

The hotels and bookmaking giant was granted a gaming licence after group executives were deemed to be 'fit and proper persons' to again run casinos.

The application was made for a planned casino at its Paddington Hilton hotel in west London. It will be a joint venture with Alan Goodenough, the industry veteran who used to run London Clubs International.

Hilton has also gained planning permission for the casino from Westminster council and is understood to be on track for local licence approval.

Winning back its gaming licence means that the way is now clearer for Hilton's wider casino ambitions, which include running the UK's first super-casino - a £200m project in Blackpool.

Hilton sold its casino interests to Gala Group for £250m in 2000 and relinquished its casino licence. In 1979, Ladbrokes, before it was owned by Hilton, had its casino licence revoked after it was caught trying to tempt heavy gamblers into its casino by offering them gifts, cancelling their debts and paying commission to intermediaries who introduced big-time losers.

Its shares crashed and a High Court judge branded the company as 'disgraceful'.

Hilton is this week expected to report a fall in profits for the first four months of the year. The decline is attributed to Ladbrokes having a poor run after losing out to punters when a high number of horseracing favourites won.

The hotels side of the business is believed to have stood its ground.