Steven Purcell, the Leader of Glasgow City Council, said:-

“This is clearly a disappointment. Fortunately our strategy for growing Glasgow as a major tourist destination was never solely dependant on winning the casino licence.  Glasgow is now firmly established as one of the world’s foremost conference and convention destinations and we expect visitor numbers to soar in future years despite this decision.

“We’ve seen record investment in our city, more jobs than ever before and tourism has become one of the most important sectors in our mixed economy.

“None of that will stop as a result of this decision. Indeed, we will now redouble our efforts to attract even more investment to the city with the benefits that brings for all.”

The Secretary of State for the Department of Culture, Media & Sport, Tessa Jowell, made the announcement after a comprehensive review of the competing bids, conducted by the independent Casino Advisory Panel.  The Council will not contest the decision made by either the Panel or the Secretary of State.

The bid enjoyed the enthusiastic support of the Glasgow City Marketing Bureau and the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce.

Cllr Purcell said the city would now focus on the bid to win the Commonwealth Games in 2014.

He added:-

“We now turn our attention towards Sri Lanka, where we will find out in November if we have been successful in our bid to bring the Commonwealth Games to Glasgow. I’m sure everyone will join with me as we step up a gear in our attempt to bring a global sporting prize to our proud nation.”

A summary of the key aspects of Glasgow’s bid can be found at:

http://www.culture.gov.uk/Cap/eip/eip_docs/glasgow/Glasgow_summary_statement.pdf

Glasgow’s full bid document can be found at: http://www.culture.gov.uk/Cap/proposals/glasgow.pdf