A BID to open a new betting shop in Bournemouth Square will go before councillors tomorrow.

The Betfred chain of bookmakers has applied for a betting premises licence at the site of the old Santander bank Old Christchurch Road.

But the application sparked an objection from town centre councillor Bob Chapman, who fears it would create a “bad image” for the town.

Mandy Payne, pictured, the chair of Bournemouth Chamber of Trade and Commerce, said: “I personally see our town centre as a place for prime retail businesses.

“Betting shops do not fit into this category. Therefore, I would prefer to see them in secondary positions and not in the town centre at all.

“Through research you can see where betting shops have taken up empty sites where banks have been and have been allowed to multiply and take up more than one and sometimes up to six prime sites in town centres. I would not like that to happen in our town.”

However, Betfred has provided the licensing committee with a lengthy response rejecting Cllr Chapman’s claims. It states there is no evidence to support his fears that children could be put at risk and adds: “Betfred does not accept that children and vulnerable persons would be put at risk were they allowed to operate a betting shop in this location.

“There are already a number of betting offices in the town centre and there is no evidence that children and vulnerable persons have been put “at risk” by the provision of betting facilities in these shops.

“Betfred trade a very large number of their existing betting shops in prominent locations in retail areas across the country, where persons including families are drawn from a wide catchment to use a range of retail and leisure facilities.”