UK Betting Sector Campaigns Against Machine Games Duty Increase Ahead of Autumn Budget

Britain’s betting sector has launched a campaign to illustrate the potential effects of another gambling tax rise as the government prepares the Autumn Budget on October 28. The Betting and Gaming Council introduced Back Our Betting Shops amid speculation that Chancellor John Healey could lift Machine Games Duty on Category B machines.

The initiative focuses on employees, customers and community ties rather than balance sheets alone. It positions betting shops as local anchors that sustain jobs, support sports such as horseracing and rugby league, and serve as familiar high street venues.

Grainne Hurst, chief executive of the BGC, said: “Behind every betting shop is a team of real people earning a living, supporting their families and playing a part in their local community.” Hurst added that further tax increases could mean more livelihoods lost, empty shopfronts and communities deprived of valued businesses.

Economic Warnings and Retail Contraction

EY modelling commissioned for the sector estimates that raising Machine Games Duty to 40% could place 16,000 jobs and almost 1,500 betting shops at risk. The same projections indicate 34 casinos could face pressure and that the Treasury could be £124 million worse off after accounting for lost corporation tax, business rates and National Insurance.

These figures arrive after sustained decline. Since 2019 more than 3,000 betting shops have closed, with over 16,000 job losses. This year alone Betfred plans 132 closures, Evoke has outlined 230, Paddy Power up to 100 across the UK and Ireland, and William Hill has already shuttered 270 in two phases. Fred Done, Betfred owner, warned a sharp rise could eliminate high-street betting shops by 2030 and force 495 immediate closures at his firm.

Betting shops still support more than 36,000 jobs. The broader regulated sector sustains 109,000 positions, delivers £6.8 billion in gross value added and generates more than £4 billion in annual tax revenue. Machine gaming constitutes around half of shop revenue, so the duty change would add roughly £100 million a year to Entain’s UK retail costs, according to chief executive Stella David.

Separate analysis from the Social Market Foundation projects that doubling the rate from 20% to 40% would raise between £275 million and £458 million from those machines. The EY work reaches an opposing net figure once shop closures reduce other tax streams. Remote Gaming Duty has already climbed from 21% to 40% in April 2026, with Remote Betting Duty scheduled to move from 15% to 25% in April 2027. Industry estimates suggest nearly 3,000 further shop closures could cut horserace levy receipts by around £70 million.

This coverage draws from World Casino News reporting.

The Budget Choice Facing Policymakers

The October 28 budget must reconcile public health arguments around machine gambling with the documented risk of accelerated high-street contraction and associated job losses. Operators cannot absorb indefinite cost increases without adjusting their retail footprints. The campaign has framed the human stakes; the government’s response will signal whether fiscal modelling fully incorporates the sector’s offsetting revenue effects.

Reporting: World Casino News

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