Rank’s David Williams urges UK to “keep foot to the floor” on land-based casino reforms
Rank Group’s director of public affairs says the timing of reforms will be vital to keep casinos in business.
UK.- Writing for the Betting and Gaming Council, Rank Group’s director of public affairs David Williams has welcomed the ongoing consultations on reforms following the publication of the UK government’s gambling white paper. However, he says that timing is not vital.
Williams said that for land-based casinos, the publication of the gambling white paper in April was “worth the wait” and that the casino industry has been “busy working its way through the detail” amid the subsequent DCMS-led consultation into land-based reforms.
But while he recognised that the “consultations are all necessary”, he warned that time is running out to “protect jobs, generate tax receipts and better meet the needs and expectations of today’s customers”.
Positive reforms for land-based casinos
He said: “The public policies in the White Paper are broadly good news. At Rank, we have publicly stated that we expect the contents of the White Paper to be net positive, overall. The long overdue change to gaming machine numbers and machine/table ratios in the vast majority of UK casinos will materially improve the customer experience and operational viability of scores of venues the length and breadth of the UK.
“The scope to provide more widespread electronic payment methods in our casinos, along with a sports betting offering will finally bring UK casinos into line with much of the rest of the world. The door is ajar in terms of ensuring our electronic terminals can offer more content which would make our clubs far more contemporary. For many years, the industry has waited for these modest, but mission-critical modernisations. Finally, we have very nearly got them over the line.”
All in the timing
However, Williams says that careful timing of reforms is important to avoid them harming casinos, suggesting that casinos may not be able to cope with being hit by the costs of a statutory levy on gambling before they have had a chance to benefit from long-awaited modernisations.
“When the last Gambling Act (2005) was unveiled, there were 160 casinos in the UK. That number has fallen to 119. Even this year, casinos have continued to close. We operate 51 Grosvenor venues throughout England, Scotland and Wales but approximately a quarter of these are currently loss-making.
“It has been well-documented how the casino industry has been slow to recover from the economic ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic and the current cost of living crisis, alongside inconsistent numbers of overseas travellers coming into London, have combined to hit leisure and entertainment venues like ours harder than most. We are chomping at the bit to secure the modernisations that will help us to address these challenges.
“At the same time, we recognise the need for improvements to the player protection landscape and its funding mechanism. The White Paper proposes a statutory levy and the introduction of an Ombudsman, by way of two examples. Land-based casinos will be expected to contribute a proportion of the costs and we acknowledge that.
“However, the sequencing of these additional cost burdens must be seen within the context of the modernisations that are also coming our way. If casinos are hit with extra costs before they are able to benefit from the upside of the modernising proposals, it will lead to more venues going to the wall.
“That is in nobody’s interests as customers would be displaced, RET contributions would be reduced, jobs would be lost and one of the key tenets of the White Paper, namely the need to ensure ‘that there is an equitable approach to the regulation of the online and the land-based industries’ would be instantly undermined.
“We are far from impatient, but after so many years of waiting for modernising reforms to land-based casinos, we are hopeful that the government will keep its foot to the floor over the coming months to ensure that our venues are able to benefit as soon as possible from the public policies that will do much to sustain jobs, stimulate growth and investment, and shape a brighter future for the UK land-based casino sector.”
Rank Groups owns the Grosvenor Casino and Mecca Bingo brands. It has appointed Mark Harper as managing director of Grosvenor Casinos from today (August 14). He will serve on the group’s executive committee.
