Gambling industry representatives have dismissed claims that widespread gambling reforms would result in an increase in tax revenues and open thousands of new jobs, describing the provided estimates as “fantasy figures”.
The gambling industry’s trade body, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has made a statement regarding the latest report issued by the Peers for Gambling Reform (PGR) that highlighted the financial contribution of the sector to the country’s economy.
The report made an assessment of the economic impact of reforms that were proposed in 2020 by the House of Lords, including a suspension on sponsorship agreements between gambling operators and sports clubs, implementation of in-depth affordability checks, imposing certain limits to the speed of play and online stakes, as well as a mandatory levy on gambling companies to fund responsible gambling initiatives and services. The PGR report estimated that the proposed reforms would have a financial impact on the industry of between £696 million and £974 million every year.
According to the report, the profits from the gambling industry were likely to surpass any financial costs that have already been associated with the proposed reforms. The Peers for Gambling Reform said that the reforms might lead to a reduction in the employment in the country’s gambling sector but diverting expenditure by the public to other sectors could create about 30,000 new jobs. The report further noted that the proposed changes would lead to a net increase worth between £68 million and £87 million in tax revenues for the exchequer.
PGR Claims Described as “Fantasy Figures” by UK Gambling Industry’s Trade Body
As mentioned above, the trade body of the UK gambling sector officially responded to the report, with its CEO Michael Dugher describing the claims made by the PGR as “fantasy figures”. Mr Dugher also noted that if the Government brings further restrictions to the betting industry, that could enhance expansion in other sectors.
The boss of the BGC also shared he was hopeful that the White Paper will result in a package of sensible reforms that support the significant improvements that have already been made in safer gambling.
The gambling industry’s trade body responded to the financial statements made in the PGR’s report, highlighting the findings of a study that was published by Ernst & Young earlier in 2021 that has come out with revelations of the substantial contribution of the UK gambling sector to the country’s economy.
The Ernst & Young report outlined the contribution that is being made by the gambling and betting industry. It revealed that the sector contributed more than £7.7 billion in gross added value to the country’s economy in 2019, with £4.5 billion brought in as tax to the Treasury. Furthermore, the British gambling sector supports more than 119,000 jobs.
Apart from that, Mr Dugher also reminded that the gambling industry has brought extensive monetary benefits to British sports. Football, horse racing, snooker, rugby and darts have been all receiving considerable monetary support from the members of the Betting and Gaming Council in the form of sponsorship agreements and racing levy.
- Author
Daniel Williams
