Betting and Gaming Council flags up rise in payments to Horseracing Betting Levy Board
The lobby group says the rise shows that the government should hold off from raising gambling taxes.
UK.- The British gambling industry lobby group, the Betting and Gaming Council, has another argument in its campaign against the UK government’s plan to create a unified Remote Betting and Gaming Tax. It’s highlighted that this year will see a fourth consecutive annual rise in the payments that bookmakers make to the Horseracing Betting Levy Board (HBLB).
The BGC said its members would contribute a record £108m in Betting Levy payments this year, according to the HBLB. That figure, which is based on the receipt of provisional end-of-year submissions from most Levy-paying bookmakers, would represent an increase of £3m from last year.
It would be the fourth year in a row that levy contributions have increased, from £97m in 2021/22, to £100m in 2022/2023, £105m in 2023/2024 and £108m in 2024/2025.
The association stressed that the increased contribution comes despite a “concerning fall” in betting turnover. HBLB figures show that betting turnover per race in 2024/25 was down by about 8 per cent against 2023/24, by 15 per cent from 2022/23 and by 19 per cent from 2021/22.
Earlier this month, the treasury launched a consultation on plans to replace the three current online betting and gaming tax rates with a single Remote Betting and Gaming Duty, which the BGC fears will mean a rise in costs for sports betting operators.
Betting and Gaming Council CEO Grainne Hurst, said: “For the fourth year running Levy contributions have increased to record levels, demonstrating the growing, long-term investment regulated betting provides British horseracing.
“But it is concerning to see once more that despite record Levy contributions, racing continues to struggle, both as a sport and as a betting product, with betting turnover down again year on year. BGC members remain committed fans of racing and recognise better than most the huge economic impact it makes in communities across the country.
“It’s now more important than ever this vital contribution is not undermined by further new tax rises through the creation of a single tax for online betting, which risks driving punters away from the sport, or into the arms of the growing, unsafe gambling black market.
“These parasite operators don’t pay tax, don’t care about safer gambling, and do not contribute a penny to the Levy. The BGC wants sustainable growth, for our members and for racing, but any new taxes would halt investment, hurt punters and harm racing.”
Meanwhile, the BGC has largely welcomed the UK government’s proposed land-based gambling reforms published this week. Casino rule changes would see increased gaming machine entitlements, an adjustment to the machine-to-table games ratio, the allowance of sports betting at casinos, an expansion of electronic table games and the removal of casino membership requirements.
