Sports Minister Tracey Crouch Resigns over 'Hold-up' To Betting Crackdown
sports betting Minister Tracey Crouch resigns over 'delay' to sports betting crackdown
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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 devices.
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 could cost the lives of issue gamblers.
She tweeted: "Politicians reoccur however concepts stick with us forever."
Prime Minister Theresa May stated she was dissatisfied Ms Crouch had resigned but there had actually been "no hold-up in advancing this essential step".
High stakes for fixed-odds wagering makers
' I lost ₤ 250,000 on sports betting devices'
sports betting maker stakes to be cut to ₤ 2
The federal government has rejected Labour declares that MPs had actually been led to think the cut would enter into force at the start of the next tax year, in April 2019. They suggested the cut had actually been intended to be presented in April 2020.
But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch said: "Unfortunately, application of these modifications are now being postponed till October 2019 due to commitments 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 decrease stakes and its implementation, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these makers.
"In addition, two individuals will tragically take their lives every day due to gambling-related problems and, because of that as much as any other, I believe this hold-up is unjustifiable."
She included: "It is a truth of federal government that ministers need to stick to collective responsibility 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 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 big credit not just for her project but for sticking up for her concepts".
Fixed-odds sports betting terminals create ₤ 1.8 bn in earnings a year for the wagering industry, according to the Gambling Commission, external, and taxes of ₤ 400m for the federal government.
Currently, individuals can bet up to ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment video games such as live roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners say the machines let players lose cash too rapidly, leading to addiction and social, and financial problems.
But bookies have warned the cut in stakes could lead to thousands of outlets closing.
In her action to Ms Crouch, the PM stated the government had actually listened to those who wanted the changes to come into effect earlier than April 2020 and "had agreed that the changes must be in place within the year - by October 2019".
In his Budget on Monday, the chancellor said the modification to fixed-odds stakes would enter into force next October at the same time as modifications to task charged on gambling companies based abroad however running in the UK.
The government states co-ordinating the date of the 2 modifications would imply the government would not be struck by a fall in tax income.
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 certified FA coach
Grammar school educated at Folkestone School for Girls, she went on to get a degree in law and politics from Hull University
She had actually worked for different Tory MPs, including Michael Howard and David Davis before standing for election
She had her very first child in 2016 and is believed to have 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 sports betting market".
He praised Ms Crouch's "courageous 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 good".
MPs from all sides of your house participated his criticism. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith stated it ought to be gone over as part of the Finance Bill later this month.
Week ahead in Parliament: The Finance Bill
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He told the BBC: "There are lots of individuals whose lives have been harmed by this dependency ... We need to do this very quickly, as rapidly as we can and in the meantime, the gaming market will make about ₤ 1bn as an outcome of this delay. That's not ideal."
Labour has told the BBC that they will put down a change to the Finance Bill to attempt and bring in the modifications next April.
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