Controversial adult gaming centre wins approval despite public opposition

Richard Youle, Local Democracy Reporter

Plans for an adult gaming centre which were strongly opposed by a group of academic, faith and political representatives have been approved.

The new Merkur Slots UK Ltd gaming centre will take over an empty Oxford Street unit in Swansea which used to be a Betfred betting shop. It’s proposed to be a 24-hour operation.

An objection to the plans from a 16-strong group including the Reverend Mark Thomas, vicar at Christchurch, Oystermouth Road, Gwyr Abertawe MS Mike Hedges and several Swansea University academics was critical of adult gaming centre slot centres and their slot machines and and claimed such venues “normalised” gambling.

The objection said there was substantial evidence gambling venues were disproportionately concentrated in deprived communities.

And it claimed there was a specific condition that the Oxford Street unit in question would not be a gambling premises when approval was given for Betfred to relocate nearby.

Calling on the council to reject the change of use application and find other ways of regenerating the city centre it said: “Swansea is worth more than another gambling venue.”

One of its signatories, Simon Dymond, director of the gambling research, education and treatment centre and a professor of psychology in Swansea, said: “Gambling harm is a major public health issue requiring urgent intervention, not expansion. ”

A planning brochure submitted by Merkur Slots UK’s parent company Merkur Casino UK – itself a subsidiary of Germany-based Merkur Group – said adult gaming centres weren’t the same as betting shops.

It said: “Public concerns surrounding betting shops were largely due to the presence of fixed odds betting terminals, which are now more heavily regulated. Our venues do not offer, and have never offered, these types of machines. Our machines offer low stakes ranging from 10p to a maximum of £2.”

The company’s venues represented “the very best in terms of exciting slot gaming entertainment”, according to the brochure, with “first class face-to-face service” from highly trained staff.

Empty for two years

The Oxford Street unit has been empty since late 2024 and was marketed by a commercial estate agent from July 2025. A letter from the commercial agent said interest from traders and other parties excluding Merkur Slots UK Ltd waned after they inspected the property due to the fit-out costs required and lack of parking. The interest from the applicant, said the agent, was “a good opportunity to help improve footfall and interest within the city centre”.

Council planning officers said in a report there were four betting shops on Union Street, which leads off Oxford Street, and said the empty unit in question was in a prime retail area. There’s also a new adult gaming centre on Union Street.

The report said consideration had to be given to two planning inspector decisions relating to Union Street, which said those particular units were likely to have remained empty given the number of other vacant premises in the vicinity had a betting shop and gaming centre not been proposed for them.

Officers said the objections had been carefully considered and that there wasn’t a condition that the empty Oxford Street unit had to have an alternative use. They added that there was separate legislation for the licensing of such premises.