The UK Government is set to slash the maximum stake allowed on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) from £100 to £2 in order to protect local gambling addicts by tackling possible gambling-related harm. The Sunday Times reported that according to an official close to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport despite the fact that no official decision has been made, a maximum stake of £2 was very likely to be announced.
In addition, such an amendment to the current status quo is believed to be backed by the newly-appointed Culture Secretary Matthew Hancock. The news for the expected move of the competent UK authorities comes at a time when campaigners have been concerned whether the appointment of Mr. Hancock, known as one of the greatest supporters of the local betting industry, would prevent the crackdown from happening.
It was at the end of October when the Government revealed its intentions to reduce the maximum stake on the controversial gambling machines, allowing a maximum of between £50 and £2. Since then, a consultation on the solutions started to discuss the possible consequences that would follow such a decision.
The consultation recommending a crackdown to be imposed on fixed-odds betting machines has been set to close on Tuesday.
Campaigners Have Called for FOBTs Maximum Stake Reduction
Fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) have raised a wave of controversy in the UK over the last few years, as they have been highly-linked with possible gambling-related harm and constantly increasing number of gambling addicts across the country.
The addictive character of the terminals, their fast speed of gameplay and the allowed maximum stake of £100 that could be placed every 20 seconds, have been vastly criticised. Said in other words, a total amount of £18,000 could be lost on the machines in an hour.
Campaigners have blamed fixed-odds betting terminals for the rising number of problem gamblers in the country and have called for more serious measures against their harmful impact on players’ lives to be taken. The betting industry, on its turn, denied these accusations on numerous occasions. According to an industry report released by the UK Gambling Commission in 2017, approximately 43% of the players who bet on FOBTs were suffering from problem gambling behaviour or could become gambling addicts.
For a long time now, FOBTs have been one of the greatest sources of revenue for leading bookmakers and gambling groups such as William Hill, Ladbrokes Coral and Paddy Power Betfair. That is exactly the reason why some operators have protested a possible crackdown, saying that a reduction to the maximum stake to £2 would bring negative consequences for local bookmakers, forcing them to close some of their high-street betting outlets and leading to lay-offs of employees.
Campaigners, however, have called for the maximum amount of the FOBTs’ stake to be cut so that the losses generated by users to be reduced. It turned out that the new Culture Secretary Mr. Hancock was not a supporter of fixed-odds betting machines and his attitude towards the terminals was very negative, because betting on FOBTs took money from other types of betting, such as horse betting for example.
- Author
Daniel Williams
