sports betting Minister Tracey Crouch resigns over 'delay' to wagering crackdown

1 November 2018

sports betting minister Tracey Crouch has resigned over "hold-ups" to a crackdown on maximum stakes for fixed-odds wagering makers.

Chancellor Philip Hammond said in Monday's Budget that the cut in stakes from ₤ 100 to ₤ 2 would enter into force in October 2019.

Ms Crouch said pressing back the date was "unjustifiable" and it could cost the lives of issue gamblers.

She tweeted: "Politicians reoccur but principles stick with us forever."

Prime Minister Theresa May said she was dissatisfied Ms Crouch had resigned but there had been "no delay in advancing this important procedure".

High stakes for fixed-odds wagering makers

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on sports betting machines'

sports betting machine stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The government has actually rejected Labour claims that MPs had been led to believe the cut would enter into force at the start of the next tax year, in April 2019. They recommended the cut had actually been planned to be introduced in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch said: "Unfortunately, implementation of these modifications are now being postponed until October 2019 due to commitments made by others to those with registered interests.

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End of twitter post by Tracey Crouch

"From the time of the statement to lower stakes and its application, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these makers.

"In addition, 2 people will tragically take their lives every day due to gambling-related issues and, because of that as much as any other, I believe this hold-up is unjustifiable."

She included: "It is a fact of government that ministers must follow collective obligation and can not disagree with policy, let alone when it is policy made against your desires connecting to your own portfolio."

'God bless'

Among those praising her on social media, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby tweeted, external that she was "principled and brave" including: "May God bless her commitment to doing right."

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she "deserves big credit not simply for her project but for sticking up for her concepts".

Fixed-odds wagering terminals generate ₤ 1.8 bn in earnings a year for the sports betting industry, according to the Gambling Commission, external, and taxes of ₤ 400m for the federal government.

Currently, people can bet approximately ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment games such as live roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners say the makers let gamers lose cash too quickly, leading to dependency and social, psychological and financial problems.

But bookmakers have actually warned the cut in stakes might lead to thousands of outlets closing.

In her reaction to Ms Crouch, the PM said the federal government had listened to those who desired the modifications to come into result sooner than April 2020 and "had agreed that the modifications should be in place within the year - by October 2019".

In his Budget on Monday, the chancellor said the change to fixed-odds stakes would enter into force next October at the exact same time as changes to task charged on gaming firms based abroad but operating in the UK.

The government says co-ordinating the date of the two changes would mean the government would not be struck by a fall in tax profits.

Who is Tracey Crouch?

The 43-year-old MP has actually represented Chatham and Aylesford, in Kent, considering that 2010

She was promoted to the front bench as sports betting minister in 2015

She is known for her opposition to fox searching and her love of football - she is a competent FA coach

Grade school informed at Folkestone School for Girls, she went on to get a degree in law and politics from Hull University

She had actually worked for numerous Tory MPs, consisting of Michael Howard and David Davis before representing election

She had her first child in 2016 and is thought to have actually been the very first Tory minister to take maternity leave

But in the Commons on Thursday, Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson accused the federal government of "capitulating to the sports betting industry".

He praised Ms Crouch's "brave and principled decision" and said Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "should be thoroughly ashamed" of prioritising "business interests over victims, profits over public health and greed over great".

MPs from all sides of your house participated his criticism. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith stated it must be talked about as part of the Finance Bill later this month.

Week ahead in Parliament: The Finance Bill

He informed the BBC: "There are plenty of people whose lives have actually been harmed by this dependency ... We need to do this very rapidly, as quickly as we can and in the meantime, the gaming industry will make about ₤ 1bn as an outcome of this delay. That's wrong."

Labour has told the BBC that they will put down a change to the Finance Bill to try and bring in the changes next April.