Gambling reform campaigners look to land another blow - but with their customary carelessness when it comes to the facts

If anyone in the gambling industry thought they would be left alone to lick their wounds after the budget, then they were soon to be disabused of the notion.

Campaigners, especially in parliament, have the bit between their teeth and appeared to have the support of the prime minister as they spelt out the supposed ills of the sector.

In answer to Labour MP Beccy Cooper at prime minister's questions last Wednesday, Keir Starmer said that she was correct in saying that "harm from online gambling has surged" and backed that up by saying that referrals to the NHS had risen by 91 per cent in the past year.

However, as Regulus Partners' Dan Waugh subsequently pointed out, the increase in referrals reflects the increase in the number of NHS gambling clinics rather than any surge in harm.

That interchange followed a debate in Westminster Hall the previous day brought by Liberal Democrat MP Charlie Maynard on the subject of "gambling regulatory reform".

Cooper had also spoken at that debate, where gambling statistics were quoted with the carelessness that has become customary in such circumstances.

She told MPs that: "Gambling profit cannot be separated from the harm inflicted. In online gambling, 86 per cent of profits come from the top five per cent of customers."

The idea that the industry's profits are dependent on people suffering from harm has been challenged by the Gambling Commission itself. Two years ago, the regulator pointed out that the 86 per cent/five per cent figure comes from research contained in the Patterns of Play research commissioned by GambleAware, which studied online accounts but made no judgement on whether the accounts belonged to problem gamblers. As the commission said at the time: "The Patterns of Play research does not show any evidence that the industry is ‘dependent on harm'."

Nevertheless, the comments made in parliament last week indicate some of the areas where campaigners' attention might go next, having succeeded in hiking some but not all gambling duties.

Machine games duty, which covers the B3 gaming machines found in betting shops, adult gaming centres (AGCs) and elsewhere, was untouched in the budget, but that does not mean it will be left alone for long.

Cooper told the Westminster Hall debate that "we should review the taxation of other harmful forms of gambling" and that "it is right that the duty paid by those machines is set at a higher rate".

She was referring only to the machines in AGCs, but it is unlikely that other sectors of the industry would be unaffected.

Beccy Cooper: "Tackling gambling harms should be at the top of our public health priorities"Credit: Rebecca Cooper ©House of Commons/Laurie Noble

If that includes betting shops, it raises the spectre of closures again and, with them, the loss of levy and media rights payments for racing. 

Maynard, Cooper and other MPs positioned gambling as a public health issue during the debate. Cooper said that "tackling gambling harms should be at the top of our public health priorities" and claimed that the money spent by the industry on advertising was "fuelling a public health crisis in this country".

The government appeared to agree with the public health argument, with culture minister Ian Murray telling MPs that the amount put aside from the new statutory levy on operators going to deal with health "shows that the levy is dealing with this as a public health issue, rather than it being a gambling or DCMS issue".

Not that the signs are particularly good on that score, given a report in The Guardian over the weekend describing the funding crisis facing problem gambling charities caused by the delays besetting the new levy system.

Murray had told the debate it was "important that as a government we now take stock of where we are" on gambling, but campaigners do not seem willing to let them do that.

Cooper told MPs that the 2023 gambling white paper did not "give us the right roadmap to address this public health crisis", claiming it did not deal with local councils having adequate powers to prevent the opening of AGCs, or confront the advertising, sponsorship and the modern marketing of gambling. 

"We must look to review the white paper and set a timeline for a new gambling act," she concluded.

It would seem that neither the government nor gambling operators will be afforded much time for reflection after the budget – and the supposed threat to public health from gambling will continue to be a recurring theme.

Government plans for gambling ombudsman take change of direction

Long before the budget and all that meant for the gambling industry, there was the previous government's white paper.

That may have been published in May 2023, but there are still key items from that document that have yet to be implemented.

How affordability checks will work is one of those issues, and it is one of major importance to both racing and gambling operators.

Another was the creation of a gambling ombudsman to deal with customer complaints and redress.

The Gambling Commission advised the then Conservative government that such a body would replace all current alternative dispute resolution providers, such as Ibas (the Independent Betting Adjudication Service). 

However, the white paper limited the new ombudsman to adjudicating complaints "relating to social responsibility or gambling harm", areas which Ibas does not cover, rather than also overseeing issues such as customers not being paid out on bets.

The idea at the time was that the new ombudsman would be set up as a non-statutory body by the Betting and Gaming Council, although it was made clear that a statutory ombudsman would be created if that did not come up to scratch.

However, it would now seem that plans have changed.

Culture minister Ian Murray was pressed on the matter in the Westminster Hall debate and replied: "The gambling ombudsman is the most effective way to deliver independent alternative dispute resolution. We know that that will require primary legislation, and we are conscious of the need to put in place an appropriate mechanism as soon as possible.

"It has not been ruled out. Work on this is ongoing, but it will require primary legislation."

Those calling for the creation of the new ombudsman may have to be patient though.

Murray added: "We are very conscious that the industry is having to deal with an awful lot of change at the moment, but it is still on the agenda."

Barber's bullets

Gibraltar concerns over budget measures

The increases in gambling duties laid out in last month's budget were described last week as "an issue of vital importance to Gibraltar" and one that could both directly and indirectly impact the territory's revenues.

Nigel Feetham, Gibraltar's minister for justice, trade and industry, said in a statement that the measures outlined by chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves were bad news for the territory, where the gambling industry accounts for around 30 per cent of GDP.

Feetham said he had instructed the Gibraltar gambling commissioner to accelerate work to open up new markets for the industry, "so that Gibraltar can move swiftly to capture opportunities beyond the UK and strengthen the long-term resilience of our gaming sector".

Missouri launches online sports betting

Online sports betting went live for the first time in the US state of Missouri last week, with bet365, Flutter Entertainment's FanDuel and Entain's joint-venture BetMGM among eight sportsbooks to launch.

Geolocation company GeoComply said that more than 250,000 sports betting accounts were active on the opening day.

GeoComply chief executive Kip Levin said: "Tens of thousands of Missourians immediately joined safe, regulated platforms the moment they became legal. It’s a powerful reminder of how quickly consumers embrace a well-regulated market when the option finally exists."

Romania joins EMHF

Romania is seeking to build a horseracing sector and is to join the European and Mediterranean Horseracing Federation (EMHF) after the Romanian Jockey Club (RJC) was given full membership status.

EMHF chief executive Paull Khan said: “Since making an initial inspection visit to Bucharest in 2019, I have been struck by the RJC’s resolve to establish properly administered horseracing in Romania. A thriving Romanian racing industry will bring benefits to the sector across the whole region."

Tudor Rosca: "Romania's voyage is just beginning in horseracing in Europe"Credit: Andrei Tomescu

RJC vice-president Tudor Rosca said: "Our voyage is just beginning in horseracing in Europe and we look forward to being an active member of the community and working to shape the future of racing in this region."

Date for the diary

Tuesday: The 254th Gimcrack Dinner takes place at York racecourse

Read these next:

British racing may have won a battle at the budget but the war is still to be won 

Gambling taxes are set to rise in the budget - it's now a question of where and by how much 

The Five Great Myths of the betting tax debate and the One Great Truth - the very real dangers to racing are laid bare 

Sign up to receive On The Nose, our essential daily newsletter, from the Racing Post. Your unmissable morning feed, direct to your email inbox every morning.