More than eight in ten betting shop jobs are outside London and over half of employees are under 35
Britain’s betting shops support more than 36,000 jobs, with young people, women and communities outside London among those most exposed to further tax rises, the Betting and Gaming Council has warned ahead of the Budget.
More than 80 per cent of betting shop jobs are based outside London, providing vital employment in market towns, former industrial communities and seaside towns, including across the North of England.
Almost one in five betting shop employees (19 per cent) is under 25, compared with just 11 per cent across the wider economy. More than half, 51 per cent, are under 35, compared with 35 per cent nationally.
For many young people, betting shops provide a first step into employment, offering valuable skills in customer service, cash handling and responsibility, alongside clear opportunities to progress into management. Women make up half of the workforce, with the sector providing secure, contracted employment and working patterns that can fit around childcare and caring responsibilities.
But the BGC has warned that thousands of these jobs would be put at risk if the Chancellor increases Machine Games Duty at the forthcoming Budget. Independent EY modelling shows that raising MGD to 40 per cent could cost up to 16,000 jobs, put almost 1,500 betting shops and as many as 34 casinos at risk, while leaving the Treasury up to £124 million worse off.
Of the jobs potentially at risk, 80 per cent are outside London and 27 per cent are in the North of England, rising to almost 40 per cent when Scotland is included.
Grainne Hurst, Chief Executive of the Betting and Gaming Council, said: “Britain’s betting shops support more than 36,000 jobs, and more than eight in ten of them are outside London. These are good, secure jobs in market towns, former industrial communities and seaside towns, many of them across the North, where opportunities can be harder to find.
“Almost one in five betting shop employees is under 25 and more than half are under 35. For many, it is their first job, their first pay packet and their first opportunity to build a career. Half the workforce are women, many balancing work with childcare and caring responsibilities. These are exactly the jobs this country needs more of, not fewer.
“The Chancellor should be under no illusion. Another tax rise would put thousands of those livelihoods on the line. Independent EY modelling shows that raising Machine Games Duty to 40 per cent could cost up to 16,000 jobs, put almost 1,500 betting shops and 34 casinos at risk, and leave the Treasury £124 million worse off. That would mean fewer jobs, more empty units on struggling high streets and less money for public services. Nobody wins.
“Eight in ten of the jobs at risk are outside London, in communities that can least afford to lose them. Every closure means another dark window on the high street and another young person, working parent or carer facing an uncertain future.
“Last year, the Treasury said it wanted to support fun, social, in-person gambling because land-based betting provides greater levels of employment. Those were the right words then, and they must mean something now.
“At a time when ministers want to get more young people into work and revive Britain’s high streets, taxing these businesses out of existence would be completely self-defeating.
“Our message to the Chancellor is simple: rule out any increase in Machine Games Duty, assess the damage already caused by higher taxes and halt the planned rise in General Betting Duty. This Budget must back Britain’s betting shops, not cost our towns thousands more jobs.”
At last year’s Budget, the Treasury recognised that land-based betting provides greater levels of employment. Since then, the sector has faced mounting pressure, including an increase in Remote Gaming Duty to 40 per cent and a further rise in General Betting Duty scheduled for April 2027.
The regulated betting and gaming industry already supports 109,000 jobs, contributes £6.8 billion to the UK economy and generates more than £4 billion a year in tax. Betting shops contribute around £140 million annually to British horseracing, while BGC members provide more than £40 million a year in funding for sports including the EFL and rugby league, underlining the wider economic and sporting consequences of further closures.