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About Five in a Row
The MP blamed the Minns Labor government’s reforms for the losses, claiming: “The gambling industry understands exactly what this government’s approach means and they love it: more reviews, more delays and more record losses.
“The question for Chris Minns is simple: how much more harm is he prepared to tolerate before he stands up to the gambling lobby?” she asked.
The reforms, announced at the end of August, introduced a package of what it referred to as “evidence-based” legislation.
What is Five in a Row?
This digital expansion coincided with a continued shrinkage in physical retail. Great Britain had 8,081 licensed premises at the end of the period, down 2% year-on-year.
Several operators have announced shop closures over recent months, including Entain and Flutter, citing a rising tax burden.
Online casino games remained the largest segment of the remote market, generating £5.7 billion ($7.6 billion) in GGY, with slots accounting for £4.8 billion ($6.4 billion) of that total.
What is Five in a Row?
Betfred currently operates approximately 1,094 retail shops across the UK. Done highlighted the concrete risks of Machine Gaming Duty – taxes on gambling machines – doubling from 20% to 40%, a move reportedly under consideration by Chancellor John Healey ahead of the Autumn Budget.
Betfred’s retail business still heavily depends on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) and in-shop gambling. Despite the maximum stake limit being cut to £2 in 2019, FOBTs account for roughly half of Betfred’s shop profits. Done emphasised that without these machines, retail betting wass “impossible”.
According to Done, such a tax rise would lead Betfred to close 495 of its shops within a year, resulting in the loss of 2,575 jobs and roughly £67 million in foregone tax revenue for the Exchequer.
