The British gambling sector is bracing for significant disruption after Wednesday’s budget delivered a tax hike that industry figures say threatens thousands of livelihoods.
Finance minister John Healey used his annual budget statement to lift Machine Games Duty, a levy applied to net takings from certain slot machines, from 20% to 25%.
The increase lands on a sector that was already absorbing higher tax burdens introduced in last year’s budget, compounding pressure on operators across the country.
Among the companies directly in the line of fire are Entain (ENT.L), the parent of high-street bookmaker Ladbrokes, and Evoke, which owns both William Hill UK and the 888 brand.
The industry had lobbied hard in the weeks before the budget, publicly warning that any further tax increases would force companies to cut staff and close venues.
Those warnings were backed by commissioned research suggesting the consequences of a sharper increase could be severe and far-reaching for local communities.
Analysis ordered by the Betting and Gaming Council, the sector’s main lobby group, found that doubling Machine Games Duty could trigger the closure of up to 1,470 betting shops nationwide.
The same research estimated that such a move could wipe out as many as 15,900 jobs across the gambling industry.
Wednesday’s increase stops short of a doubling of the rate, but operators are likely to argue it still accelerates a trend that threatens the viability of physical betting outlets.
The Betting and Gaming Council has consistently argued that policymakers underestimate how much of the sector’s workforce and physical footprint depends on the economics of machine-based gaming revenue.
Healey’s budget confirmed the government is pressing ahead with the change regardless, signalling that gambling revenues remain an attractive target as ministers search for ways to raise funds.
For shareholders and executives at Entain and Evoke, the task now is to model precisely how the new 25% rate affects margins and whether any operational restructuring becomes necessary in response.
