Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Neath and Swansea East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on (a) the public purse and (b) bookmakers of implementing the reduced maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals to two pounds in (i) April 2019, (ii) April 2020 and (iii) at any other times; and if he will publish any such assessments.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Estimates of the effect on gambling duties approved by the Office for Budget Responsibility are not available.
DCMS have met with industry to understand the technological requirements along with the potential impact on employment.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Neath and Swansea East)
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.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
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.
Asked by: Lord Chadlington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 1 May (HL7099), what assessment they have made of the responses to the consultation on proposals for changes to gaming machines and social responsibility measures; when they intend to announce the implementation date for the reduced £2 stake for Fixed Odds Betting Terminals; and whether they plan to make such an announcement in their forthcoming Budget statement.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
The draft Statutory Instrument needed to reduce the maximum stake on sub-category B2 machines to £2 was notified to the European Commission in September under the requirements of the EU Technical Standards and Regulations Directive. We intend to lay the draft affirmative regulations before Parliament, for the usual process of approval, in the Autumn term.Questions about gambling participation are included in the large scale English and Scottish Health Surveys and an alternative omnibus survey for Wales. The Combined Health Survey for England, Scotland and Wales 2016 results were published on 6 September 2018 and can be found at https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/PDF/survey-data/Gambling-behaviour-in-Great-Britain-2016.pdf. A copy of the survey is attached.
In addition, the Gambling Commission collects participation data through smaller scale quarterly telephone and online surveys and monitors underage gambling through its young persons survey. The latest information can be found at: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/news-action-and-statistics/Statistics-and-research/Levels-of-participation-and-problem-gambling/Gambling-participation-and-problem-gambling.aspx. A copy is attached.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the lowering of stakes on fixed-odds betting terminals in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Gambling in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and the regulatory change to sub-category B2 machines will cover Great Britain only.
Asked by: Ronnie Cowan (Scottish National Party - Inverclyde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
What steps his Department is taking to tackle gambling-related harm.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
This Government takes gambling-related harm seriously and in May we announced a strong package of measures to tackle it. We have taken decisive action on fixed-odds betting terminals to cut the maximum stake to £2. On 5th September, the Gambling Commission launched its consultation on proposals to increase player protections online, including stronger age and identity verification. Further consultation on affordability checks will follow in due course
Asked by: Danielle Rowley (Labour - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the technological changes needed for a reduction in maximum stake on fixed odds betting terminals to be completed.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
On 17 May, as part of its response to the Consultation on proposed changes for Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures, the Government announced that the maximum stake for B2 machines would be reduced to £2. Officials have made good progress on drafting the SI to implement the change and will continue to engage with stakeholders on the technological requirements.Asked by: Danielle Rowley (Labour - Midlothian)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what engagement she has had with (a) the gambling industry and (b) Gamblers Anonymous on the reduction in maximum stake on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
Ministers have regular meetings with stakeholders to discuss a range of issues including the stake reduction on B2 machines. Details of Ministerial meetings are published on a quarterly basis on gov.uk
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what meetings civil servants and ministers had with stakeholders between 1 January and 11 July about the reduction in stakes on fixed-odds betting terminals from £100 to £2; and what were the (1) dates, (2) locations, and (3) attendees, of each of those meetings.
Answered by Lord Ashton of Hyde
Ministers and officials from DCMS have regular meetings with stakeholders to discuss a range of issues including B2 stake reduction. Details of Ministerial meetings are published on a quarterly basis on gov.uk.
Asked by: Lord Chadlington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much they expect to generate in taxes from Fixed Odds Betting Terminals in (1) 2018, (2) 2019, and (3) 2020.
Answered by Lord Bates
Forecasts for betting and gaming tax receipts are published by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). However, the OBR does not publish a breakdown of projected revenues from the 7 individual betting and gaming duties due to the disclosive nature of the underlying data; doing so would contravene taxpayer confidentiality rules due to the limited number of operators in certain areas of the market.
Asked by: David Evennett (Conservative - Bexleyheath and Crayford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the timetable is for the decision to reduce the maximum stake allowed for fixed-odds betting terminals to two pounds to be implemented.
Answered by Tracey Crouch
As the Government's response to the Consultation on proposals for changes to Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures set out, the reduction in maximum stake on B2 machines will be delivered through secondary legislation in due course. We are currently preparing draft regulations needed to make the change, alongside engaging with the gambling industry to ensure that there is an appropriate lead-in period to allow for technological changes to be made.