UK Treasury Committee backs calls for higher taxes on online gambling
The committee’s report rejects arguments made by the gambling industry as “scaremongering”.
UK.- With under three weeks to go until chancellor Rachel Reeves announces the UK government’s Autumn Budget on November 26, a key parliamentary committee has thrown its weight behind calls for a tax rise on online gambling. The Treasury Committee has published a report that argues that online gaming should be taxed “at a rate which reflects the growth of harmful and addictive betting practices”.
Last week, the committee held a hearing in which it heard arguments from both sides. The think tanks Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the Social Market Foundation made the case for their proposal to raise Remote Gaming Duty from 21 to 50 per cent, machine games duty from 20 to 50 per cent and general betting duty from 15 to 25 per cent.
On the other side, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) challenged the notion that gambling inherently causes social harm and warned that higher taxes would be passed on to customers and could cause them to turn to unregulated platforms. However, in its report released today, the committee makes it clear that it wasn’t convinced by the BGC’s arguments, describing them as “industry scarmongering”.
The committee rejected the assertion that gambling causes no social ills. As for the argument that higher taxes could drive people to unlicensed operators, it recommends that the government examine how to tackle any black market gambling and consider whether “additional anti-avoidance measures” are needed.
The report notes that the shift towards online gambling has accelerated in recent years, with the proportion of gross gambling yield associated with remote gaming rising from 12 per cent in 2013/14 to 44 per cent in 2023/24.
It claims: “Online betting games can promote harmful, addictive, high frequency gambling that brings no benefits to people, families and communities. The Committee is urging the Government to more sharply recognise that different types of gambling inflict different levels of harm and say this should be reflected in its approach to taxation.”
Committee chair Dame Meg Hillier MP said: “Whether at a local racetrack or a seaside arcade, for many people, gambling is a fun pastime enjoyed with family and friends. But, we heard that the industry is hiding its more insidious parts behind the friendly facade of its traditional, cultural forms.
“For too many people, the highly addictive and harmful nature of online betting games has seriously impacted their lives and the lives of those around them. The impacts of problem gambling in our communities are plain to see, and the industry’s boldfaced claim to our inquiry that it does no social harm is staggering.
“Online betting games are extracting huge amounts of money from people who have been funnelled into the most addictive, harmful corners of the industry via their love of sports, or the occasional game of bingo.
“We are urging the Government not to cave in to industry scaremongering and to tax online betting games at a rate that reflects the level of harm they inflict.”
