Sports Minister Tracey Crouch Resigns over ‘Hold-up’ To Betting Crackdown

sports betting Minister Tracey Crouch resigns over ‘delay’ 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 machines.

Chancellor Philip Hammond said 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 could cost the lives of problem bettors.

She tweeted: “Politicians come and go but concepts stay with us permanently.”

Prime Minister Theresa May said she was disappointed Ms Crouch had resigned but there had actually been “no delay in advancing this crucial step”.

High stakes for fixed-odds sports betting machines

‘ I lost ₤ 250,000 on wagering makers’

sports betting maker stakes to be cut to ₤ 2

The federal government has denied Labour declares 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 recommended the cut had been planned to be presented in April 2020.

But in her resignation letter, Ms Crouch said: “Unfortunately, implementation of these modifications are now being postponed until October 2019 due to commitments made by others to those with registered interests.

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End of twitter post by Tracey Crouch

“From the time of the announcement to decrease stakes and its execution, over ₤ 1.6 bn will be lost on these makers.

“In addition, two individuals will tragically take their lives every day due to gambling-related problems and, because of that as much as any other, I think this delay is unjustifiable.”

She added: “It is a reality of government that ministers need to follow cumulative duty and can not disagree with policy, not to mention when it is policy made against your dreams connecting 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 courageous” including: “May God bless her commitment to doing right.”

Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson tweeted, external that she “deserves big credit not simply for her campaign but for sticking up for her concepts”.

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

Currently, individuals can wager approximately ₤ 100 every 20 seconds on electronic casino games such as live roulette. Anti-gambling campaigners state the makers let cash too quickly, resulting in dependency and social, mental and monetary issues.

But bookmakers have warned the cut in stakes might lead to thousands of outlets closing.

In her reaction to Ms Crouch, the PM stated the government had listened to those who desired the modifications to come into result sooner than April 2020 and “had actually agreed that the changes ought to remain in location 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 duty charged on gaming firms based abroad but running in the UK.

The government says co-ordinating the date of the two changes would mean the government would not be struck by a fall in tax revenue.

Who is Tracey Crouch?

The 43-year-old MP has actually represented Chatham and Aylesford, in Kent, because 2010

She was promoted to the front bench as sports betting minister in 2015

She is understood for her opposition to fox searching and her love of football – she is a competent FA coach

Grade school educated at Folkestone School for Girls, she went on to get a degree in law and politics from Hull University

She had worked for different Tory MPs, consisting of Michael Howard and David Davis before standing for election

She had her very first kid in 2016 and is believed to have actually been the very 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 gambling market”.

He applauded Ms Crouch’s “brave and principled decision” and said Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright “ought to be thoroughly embarrassed” of prioritising “business interests over victims, revenues over public health and greed over good”.

MPs from all sides of your house participated in his criticism. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith stated it should be talked about as part of the Finance Bill later on this month.

Week ahead in Parliament: The Finance Bill

He informed the BBC: “There are lots of people whose lives have been damaged by this addiction … We need to do this extremely quickly, as rapidly as we can and in the meantime, the gaming market will make about ₤ 1bn as a result of this hold-up. That’s not ideal.”

Labour has actually informed the BBC that they will put down a change to the Finance Bill to attempt and generate the changes next April.