Nearly 250 betting shops in UK seaside areas could be forced to close if the Chancellor hikes gambling taxes in the Budget, it is claimed. The Betting and Gaming Council claims 244 stores and eight casinos could close, with 1,761 jobs lost.
Coastal communities at risk
There are 609 betting shops and 20 casinos in coastal communities, which could be hit with a tax increase on quiz, slot and fruit machines. Bosses are worried about a mooted machine games duty hike, which could impact a source of employment in seaside towns.
“Betting shops are much more than a place to have a bet,” trainee manager at JenningsBet in Christchurch, Dorset, Jack Pugh, told the Sun. “For a lot of regulars, we’re part of their daily lives. We know nearly everyone by name and plenty of them pop in just for a cuppa, a chat and a bit of football banter. We’re not just staff to them, we’re friends.”
High streets under pressure
He added that communities on the coast cannot afford another tax raid that endangers jobs, forces companies to close and leaves more empty units on already struggling high streets.
Betting & Gaming Council CEO Grainne Hurst told the newspaper: “Betting shops, bingo clubs and casinos provide vital jobs and investment in seaside towns, where employment opportunities can be limited.”
Budget revenue options
Mr Healey is seeking ways to raise revenue and keep the UK’s Budget deficit under control in the face of soaring Government borrowing costs. One option he is considering is reversing former Conservative Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s reduction in the surcharge banks pay on their profits from 8% to 3%, The Guardian reported.
Trades Union Congress (TUC) general secretary Paul Nowak backed the move, which his union calculated would raise £2.25 billion a year. He said: “Britain’s big four banks are making a billion pounds a week, while bonuses have hit a post-crash record.
“These are bumper profits – driven by high interest rates and households’ mortgage misery. The Treasury has already lost £6 billion in revenue from the Tories’ senseless bank tax cut – now it’s time to make sure banks pay their fair share.”
The TUC called for an even bigger surcharge increase, to 16%, saying that could raise £24 billion in tax revenues over four years.
