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

1 November 2018
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sports betting minister Tracey Crouch has resigned over "hold-ups" 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 come into force in October 2019.

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

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

Prime Minister Theresa May said she was dissatisfied Ms Crouch had resigned however there had actually been "no hold-up in advancing this important measure".

High stakes for fixed-odds sports betting makers

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on wagering machines'

sports betting device stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The federal government has actually denied Labour declares that MPs had actually 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 been planned to be introduced in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch said: "Unfortunately, implementation of these modifications are now being delayed till 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 decrease stakes and its execution, 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 issues and, for that reason as much as any other, I believe this hold-up is unjustifiable."

She included: "It is a truth of government that ministers need to adhere to cumulative duty and can not disagree with policy, not to mention when it is policy made versus your wishes associating with your own portfolio."

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

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she "is worthy of big credit not simply for her campaign but for sticking up for her principles".

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

Currently, people can wager up to ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic gambling establishment video games such as live roulette. Anti-gambling advocates state the makers let gamers lose cash too quickly, resulting in dependency and social, psychological and monetary issues.

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

In her response to Ms Crouch, the PM said the government had listened to those who wanted the changes to come into impact quicker 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 modification to fixed-odds stakes would enter into force next October at the very same time as modifications to task charged on gambling companies based abroad but running in the UK.

The government says co-ordinating the date of the two 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, because 2010

She was 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
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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 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 accused the federal government of "capitulating to the gaming market".

He applauded Ms Crouch's "bold and principled choice" and stated Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "should be completely ashamed" of prioritising "business interests over victims, profits 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 informed the BBC: "There are a lot of individuals whose lives have been damaged by this dependency ... We need to do this extremely quickly, as quickly as we can and in the meantime, the gambling market will make about ₤ 1bn as an outcome of this hold-up. That's wrong."

Labour has actually told the BBC that they will put down an amendment to the Finance Bill to try and generate the changes next April.