sports betting Minister Tracey Crouch resigns over 'hold-up' to wagering crackdown

1 November 2018

sports betting minister Tracey Crouch has resigned over "hold-ups" to a crackdown on optimal stakes for fixed-odds wagering 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 stated pushing back the date was "unjustifiable" and it might cost the lives of problem bettors.

She tweeted: "Politicians reoccur however principles remain with us permanently."

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

High stakes for fixed-odds sports betting makers

' I lost ₤ 250,000 on sports betting machines'

sports betting device stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The government has actually rejected Labour claims 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 suggested the cut had been intended to be presented in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch stated: "Unfortunately, application of these modifications are now being postponed till October 2019 due to commitments made by others to those with signed up interests.

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End of twitter post by Tracey Crouch

"From the time of the announcement to reduce stakes and its implementation, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these machines.

"In addition, two people will unfortunately take their lives every day due to gambling-related issues and, because of that as much as any other, I think this delay is unjustifiable."

She added: "It is a fact of government that ministers need to comply with cumulative obligation and can not disagree with policy, let alone when it is policy made against your wishes relating to your own portfolio."

'God bless'

Among those applauding her on social media, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby tweeted, external that she was "principled and brave" adding: "May God bless her dedication to doing right."

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she "is worthy of big credit not just for her project but for sticking up for her concepts".

Fixed-odds sports betting terminals produce ₤ 1.8 bn in revenue a year for the sports betting industry, according to the Gambling Commission, external, and taxes of ₤ 400m for the federal government.

Currently, people can bet as much as ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic casino video games such as roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners state the machines let gamers lose money too quickly, causing addiction and social, psychological and monetary issues.

But bookmakers have actually alerted the cut in stakes could cause countless outlets closing.

In her action to Ms Crouch, the PM said the government had actually listened to those who wanted the changes to come into result faster than April 2020 and "had actually agreed that the modifications should remain in place within the year - by October 2019".

In his Budget on Monday, the chancellor said the change to fixed-odds stakes would enter force next October at the same time as modifications to responsibility charged on gambling companies based abroad but running in the UK.

The government states co-ordinating the date of the two changes would mean 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, since 2010

She was promoted 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 qualified FA coach

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 various Tory MPs, including Michael Howard and David Davis before representing election

She had her very first kid in 2016 and is believed to have actually been the first Tory minister to take maternity leave

But in the Commons on Thursday, Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson implicated the federal government of "capitulating to the sports betting industry".

He applauded Ms Crouch's "brave and principled choice" and stated Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright "need to be completely embarrassed" of prioritising "corporate interests over victims, earnings over public health and greed over good".

MPs from all sides of your home took part his criticism. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said it needs to be discussed as part of the Finance Bill later on this month.

Week ahead in Parliament: The Finance Bill

He told the BBC: "There are a lot of people whose lives have actually been harmed by this dependency ... We need to do this extremely rapidly, as quickly as we can and in the meantime, the gaming industry will make about ₤ 1bn as a result of this hold-up. That's wrong."

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