Record lottery sales as online play soars
DEFENCE engineering giant Babcock International Group has said it has continued to make “good progress” following the after-effects of the Covid-19 pandemic as it reported flat revenues and marginally dipped profits.
The group’s half-year results for the six months to September 30 show it made a statutory operating profit of £72.8 million, down from £75.4m a year earlier.
Revenue rose to £2.14 billion from £2.13bn in the same period in 2021, when it ultimately swung back into the red having made a fullyear loss of £785.3m in 2020.
Bosses at the global firm, which recently recruited more than 200 new apprentices and graduates to its Devonport operations in Plymouth, said they were maintaining expectations for the rest of the current financial year.
The board said a “strong contract backlog” worth £9.9bn had been maintained through the period with more than 90% of the 2023 financial year’s revenue under contract as of the end of September. Babcock said highlights from the trading period included a major £500m, 10-year contract to upgrade, operate and support Australia’s high frequency communications capability for the Australia Defence Force.
It also won a six-year deal with the UK Royal Navy to install and provide in-service support for the maritime Communications Electronic Support Measures capability on the Navy’s Type 23 frigate ship.
Chief executive David Lockwood said: “Whilst there is still more to be done, the significant contracts won this year underpin our confidence in our potential to deliver sustained growth and capture margin upside over the medium term.
“We are operating in a macro economic and geopolitical environment that remains volatile. We are focused on effectively addressing the challenges our business faces, most notably inflationary pressures, whilst also ensuring we maximise the increased opportunity set we are seeing in a market backdrop that is supportive for defence.”
OUTGOING National Lottery operator Camelot has revealed its highest halfyear sales as soaring numbers of players online offset falling in-store ticket and scratchcard demand amid “difficult” trading on the high street.
The group – which earlier this year lost out on the lottery’s next licence after running the game since 1994 – reported overall sales up 2.6% to £4.1 billion for the six months to September 24.
It put the milestone performance down to a 13% jump in online sales, with mobile phone play up 19% to an all-time high of £1.4bn and as players signed up for a series of huge EuroMillions rollover draws in the spring and summer.
More than 15,000 players a minute signed into the National Lottery app and website ahead of the £184 million jackpot draw in May.
But in-store ticket sales fell 4.7% to £2.2bn, with Camelot saying its retail partners were hit by “ongoing difficult conditions”, with fewer shoppers visiting shops and preferring to do bigger shops less often.
This led to a 3.7% fall in scratchcard and instant win game sales to £1.7bn, with in-store scratchcards particularly impacted. Camelot said: “Despite this, retail remains the largest National Lottery sales channel and Camelot remains committed to doing everything it can to help its in-store partners, particularly independent outlets which make up the majority of its 44,500-strong retail footprint.”
The overall sales success allowed Camelot to deliver its best half-year returns for good causes, up 8.1% to £956.5m.
The figures come days after rival Allwyn – the group awarded the contract to run the lottery licence from 2024 – announced a deal to buy Camelot from the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan in a move that will end legal wrangling over the decision to hand over the licence.
Allwyn is hoping to close the deal early next year, subject to approval by the UK Gambling Commission, and is paying around £100m, according to reports.
But the latest sales results also come amid pressure from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport Committee for Allwyn to do more to protect players from gambling harm while “restoring the link” between buying a ticket and supporting worthy causes.
The committee of MPs called for Allwyn to make a greater financial commitment to the GambleAware charity to support those at risk of harm from gambling, while Lottery products should signpost support services.
Allwyn, previously known as Sazka, runs lotteries in Austria, Italy and Greece and plans to cut the cost of UK tickets from £2 to £1.