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

1 November 2018

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

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 problem gamblers.

She tweeted: "Politicians reoccur but concepts stick with us permanently."

Prime Minister Theresa May said she was dissatisfied Ms Crouch had actually resigned but there had been "no delay in bringing forward this essential procedure".

High stakes for fixed-odds wagering devices

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on wagering machines'

sports betting maker stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The federal government has actually claims that MPs had actually been led to think the cut would enter force at the start of the next tax year, in April 2019. They suggested the cut had been intended to be presented in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch said: "Unfortunately, application of these changes are now being delayed 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 minimize stakes and its implementation, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these devices.

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

She included: "It is a truth of government that ministers must stick to collective duty 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 brave" adding: "May God bless her dedication 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 principles".

Fixed-odds sports betting terminals generate ₤ 1.8 bn in profits a year for the wagering industry, according to the Gambling Commission, external, and taxes of ₤ 400m for the government.
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Currently, people can bet approximately ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment games such as roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners state the makers let players lose cash too rapidly, leading to addiction and social, psychological and monetary issues.

But bookmakers have alerted the cut in stakes might lead to countless outlets closing.

In her reaction to Ms Crouch, the PM stated the federal government had listened to those who wanted the changes to come into result earlier than April 2020 and "had actually concurred that the modifications must 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 force next October at the very same time as changes to duty charged on gaming companies based abroad but operating in the UK.

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

Who is Tracey Crouch?

The 43-year-old MP has 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 qualified FA coach

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 various Tory MPs, including Michael Howard and David Davis before representing 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 government of "capitulating to the gambling industry".
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He praised Ms Crouch's "courageous and principled decision" and stated Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "need to be thoroughly ashamed" of prioritising "business interests over victims, earnings 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 should be talked about 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 people whose lives have been damaged by this dependency ... We require to do this extremely rapidly, as quickly as we can and in the meantime, the sports betting market will make about ₤ 1bn as a result of this hold-up. That's not right."

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