Entain Warns UK Government Over Machine Games Duty as 400 Jobs Face Cuts

Entain is planning to cut around 400 Customer Care jobs as CEO Stella David warns that further gambling tax increases would put additional pressure on the company’s UK betting shop estate. Entain CEO Stella David has urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to consider the wider impact of tax cuts. (Image: Shutterstock) The Ladbrokes and Coral owner confirmed that approximately 400 of its 2,000 Customer Care roles are expected to be cut. The teams cover areas including Customer Protection and Resolution, Risk and Payments, Service Delivery, Planning and Insight, and Business Operations. David said the cuts were being made to ensure the business “remains competitive, financially resilient and well-positioned for the future.” The reductions were announced as David wrote to UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham over proposals to increase Machine Games Duty (MGD) to 40%. Rates currently sit between 5% and 25%. In the letter, David urged the government to “look beyond the headline tax rate” and consider the wider effect the tax rise would have on betting shops, employment, and investment. It is the latest blow for the UK’s retail betting sector. Earlier this month, Flutter said it was reviewing up to 100 Paddy Power shop closures across the UK and Ireland, putting about 400 jobs at risk. That followed similar announcements from Evoke and Betfred, which earlier this year announced plans to shut 230 and 132 shops respectively. Entain Warns Over £100M Tax Hit David said adopting a proposal from the Social Market Foundation to increase the standard MGD rate to 40% would add around £100 million a year to Entain’s UK retail costs. In a letter sent to Burnham, David said the increase would hit “businesses already struggling to absorb major tax increases” introduced in the previous budget. She added that another rise would make it harder for high-street operators to maintain shops and jobs. “A further doubling of Machine Games Duty would therefore add another significant cost to businesses already struggling to absorb major tax increases, stacking the odds against labour-intensive high-street operators and making it harder to sustain shops, jobs and investment in local communities,” David said. The Social Market Foundation estimated in June that doubling duty on Category B machines could raise up to £458 million. According to the Financial Times, UK Chancellor John Healey is considering whether any increase could be targeted specifically at betting shops and adult gaming centers while sparing lower-stakes machines found in pubs, bingo halls, and seaside arcades. One Labour official told the FT that tackling adult gaming centers is an issue Burnham “really cares about.” EY and BGC Warn of Shop Closures David also cited research by EY commissioned by the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC). The modelling estimated that a 40% MGD rate could lead to as many as 1,470 betting shop closures and 15,900 job losses across the UK. It also projected a potential £120 million net loss to the Exchequer. David warned that heavier taxation could push customers toward unlicensed operators. “The better outcome for communities and the public finances is to keep gambling within the regulated sector and, wherever possible, bring activity currently taking place illegally back into it,” she said. The post Entain Warns UK Government Over Machine Games Duty as 400 Jobs Face Cuts appeared first on Casino.org.