Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on the number of (a) people employed by and (b) jobs created in the gambling industry of implementing the reduced maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals to two pounds.

The Government received over 7,000 responses to the Consultation on proposals for changes to Gaming Machines and social responsibility measures, and, as part of the evidence received, considered representations from the Association of British Bookmakers, individual operators and others that discussed the potential impact on employment in Licensed Betting Offices.

Since publication of the consultation response in May, the Government has engaged with the Association of British Bookmakers, bookmakers, and machine manufacturers to further discuss the potential impact of the stake reduction.

The Government has made no assessment of the number of jobs created in the gambling industry by reducing the B2 maximum stake.