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

1 November 2018
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sports betting minister Tracey Crouch has actually resigned over "delays" to a crackdown on optimal stakes for fixed-odds wagering makers.

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

Ms Crouch said pressing back the date was "unjustifiable" and it might cost the lives of issue gamblers.
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She tweeted: "Politicians come and go but concepts stick with us forever."

Prime Minister Theresa May said she was disappointed Ms Crouch had resigned however there had been "no hold-up in bringing forward this essential procedure".

High stakes for fixed-odds sports betting machines

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on wagering devices'

sports betting device stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

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

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch stated: "Unfortunately, implementation of these modifications are now being postponed up until October 2019 due to dedications 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 decrease stakes and its execution, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these machines.

"In addition, two people will tragically take their lives every day due to gambling-related issues and, for that factor as much as any other, I believe this delay is unjustifiable."

She included: "It is a truth of government that ministers should abide by cumulative obligation and can not disagree with policy, let alone when it is policy made against your dreams associating with your own portfolio."

'God bless'

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

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she "deserves huge credit not just for her project however for sticking up for her concepts".

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

Currently, people can wager approximately ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment video games such as roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners say the makers let players lose cash too quickly, causing addiction and social, mental and financial issues.

But bookmakers have alerted the cut in stakes might cause thousands of outlets closing.

In her reaction to Ms Crouch, the PM stated the government had actually listened to those who wanted the modifications to come into effect faster than April 2020 and "had concurred that the modifications ought to remain 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 very same time as changes to responsibility charged on sports betting companies based abroad however running in the UK.
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The government says co-ordinating the date of the 2 changes would suggest the would not be hit by a fall in tax income.

Who is Tracey Crouch?

The 43-year-old MP has represented Chatham and Aylesford, in Kent, since 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 certified FA coach
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Grade school educated at Folkestone School for Girls, she went on to get a degree in law and politics from Hull University

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

She had her first kid in 2016 and is believed to have been the very first Tory minister to take maternity leave
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But in the Commons on Thursday, Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson implicated the federal government of "capitulating to the sports betting industry".
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He praised Ms Crouch's "bold and principled choice" and said Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "must be completely ashamed" of prioritising "business interests over victims, revenues over public health and greed over good".

MPs from all sides of your home signed up with in his criticism. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said it must be gone over as part of the Finance Bill later on this month.

Week ahead in Parliament: The Finance Bill

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

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