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

1 November 2018

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

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

Ms Crouch stated pushing back the date was "unjustifiable" and it might cost the lives of issue gamblers.

She tweeted: "Politicians come and go but concepts stay with us permanently."

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

High stakes for fixed-odds wagering makers

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on wagering devices'

sports betting machine stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The federal government has actually denied Labour declares that MPs had been led to believe the cut would enter force at the start of the next tax year, in April 2019. They suggested the cut had been meant to be introduced in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch stated: "Unfortunately, application of these changes are now being postponed till October 2019 due to dedications made by others to those with signed up 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 machines.

"In addition, two individuals will unfortunately take their lives every day due to gambling-related problems and, because of that as much as any other, I believe this delay is unjustifiable."

She added: "It is a reality of government that ministers need to follow collective responsibility and can not disagree with policy, not to mention when it is policy made versus your desires connecting to your own portfolio."

'God bless'

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

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she "deserves substantial credit not simply for her campaign however for sticking up for her principles".

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

Currently, individuals can wager up to ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment games such as live roulette. Anti-gambling advocates say the makers let gamers lose money too quickly, causing addiction and social, psychological and financial problems.

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

In her response to Ms Crouch, the PM stated the federal government had listened to those who desired the changes to come into effect sooner than April 2020 and "had concurred that the modifications need to remain in place within the year - by October 2019".

In his Budget on Monday, the chancellor stated the change to fixed-odds stakes would enter into force next October at the same time as modifications to task charged on gambling firms based abroad but running in the UK.

The federal government states co-ordinating the date of the two changes would indicate the federal government would not be hit by a fall in tax income.

Who is Tracey Crouch?

The 43-year-old MP has actually represented Chatham and Aylesford, in Kent, given 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 certified FA coach

Grammar 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 kid in 2016 and is believed 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 implicated the federal government of "capitulating to the gaming market".

He praised Ms Crouch's "courageous and principled choice" and stated Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "must be completely embarrassed" of prioritising "business interests over victims, earnings over public health and greed over excellent".

MPs from all sides of your home joined 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 lots of individuals whose lives have actually been damaged by this dependency ... We require to do this very rapidly, as rapidly as we can and in the meantime, the gaming industry will make about ₤ 1bn as a result of this hold-up. That's not ideal."

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.