UK keeps questioning fixed-odd machines
According to a study, fixed-odd betting terminals in the United Kingdom are one of the most expensive in the world.
UK.- Authorities of the United Kingdom keep demanding further regulation on fixed-odd betting terminals in order to reduce the minimum wage from 100 pounds to 2 pounds by the end of the year. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is supposed to conduct a review every three years, but the last was opened in January 2010 and the Government has yet to announce when the next will be.
Croydon South Tory MP Chris Philp said: “Across all political parties, there is a strong feeling that these gambling machines are having a detrimental effect on our high streets,” and continued: “ResPublica’s report provides vital evidence to show how this damages the lives of people, our economic prosperity and the fabric of our communities. Crucially, it demonstrates how this damage could be mitigated by smarter regulation of gambling machines, by reducing their maximum stake to £2 per spin. This is not about more regulation, but rather better regulation.”
The £100-a-spin casino machines raised as much as £425million for the Treasury in 2015, but have been linked to violence, addiction and antisocial behaviour. At the moment, Osborne faces growing opposition from more than two-thirds of MPs due to his failure to act against fixed-odds betting terminals.
Recently a ComRes poll of MPs found eight out of 10 believe FOBTs are harming vulnerable people. The largest cross party survey carried out on the issue revealed that more than two thirds (67 percent) believe the £100 stake is too high and it also found that 72 percent of MPs agree that there should be greater regulation of FOBTs by the Government.
