Fixed odds delay plea
CALLS have been made to scrap the delay in cutting the maximum stake on fixed odds betting machines.
The cut to £2 will not go ahead until October next year instead of April as planned.
THE UK Government has been urged to scrap the delay in cutting the stakes on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals.
It was announced the reduction in the maximum stake from £100 to £2 due in April would not take place until next October.
Officials from the Gambling Commission have been taken on a tour of betting shops in Glasgow to see the concentration of the machines in poorer communities.
Councillor Michelle Ferns took the Commission regulators to Shettleston.
She said: “These machines are a social blight on communities across Glasgow – and I thought it was vital for the Gambling Commission to see first-hand how prominent they are in a place like Shettleston, which faces so many challenges.
“They were able to see for themselves in a high street like this how clustering and over provision can see up to 10 outlets with four machines each in as little as a mile
“Given the huge social harm being caused by these machines, reducing the maximum stake to £2 was the right decision. The Government now needs to back up its words with action.
“Further delays only serve to line the pockets of the bookmakers and does little to support those individuals and families whose lives have been devastated by the addictive nature of these machines.”
Research has shown that the average FOBT user loses £192 a month, with the average user of machines already capped at £2 a spin losing just £22 in comparison.
It is estimated that £192m will be lost on the machines during the delay.
Tracey Crouch resigned as UK’s Sports Minister in protest against the delay in reducing the maximum stake.
Meanwhile, the Scottish Government has written to the UK Government calling for the delay to be scrapped.
Ash Denham, Community safety minister, said the cutting of the stake is welcome.
She said: “Fixed odds betting terminals are often described as ‘the crack cocaine of gambling’ – reflecting the hugely addictive and potentially destructive nature of gambling which they promote.
“In writing to the UK Secretary of State, I have made clear the Scottish Government’s position that the maximum stake must be reduced as soon as possible – and as a key part of efforts to tackle this problem which blights too many households and communities.”