William Hill owner urges government to halt gambling tax rises

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 23 Oct, 10:44 · Archive

Evoke, which owns William Hill, has closed 270 betting shops and urged the government to reconsider further gambling tax increases.

Evoke, which owns William Hill and the 888 brand, has closed 270 betting shops over the past year and urged the government to reconsider further gambling tax increases. The company's chief executive, Per Widerstrom, said the closures showed 'the real impact on jobs and livelihoods from higher industry taxation' and called on the government to 'carefully consider any further increases' ahead of next week's Budget.

The closures followed tax rises introduced by former chancellor Rachel Reeves. Remote gaming duty on online casino games rose from 21 per cent to 40 per cent of a provider's profits from April this year. A new online sports betting duty of 25 per cent will apply to all sports except horse racing from 2027. Evoke expects these changes to increase its betting tax bill by up to £135 million a year from 2027.

The government is reportedly considering increasing machine games duty, which taxes slot machines and other gaming machines, at the Budget next week. Evoke is being taken over by Greek gambling firm Bally's Intralot in a £243 million deal, expected to complete by the end of this year or early next. Flutter, the owner of Paddy Power and Sky Bet, this week announced 1,400 job cuts in its UK and Ireland business, which its boss said reflected tax hikes that had 'fundamentally changed the economic model' of the regulated betting industry.

How it is being reported

• William Hill owner makes last-minute plea to halt gambling tax rises after axing 270 shopsThe owner of William Hill has urged the Chancellor to halt a planned tax raid on gambling firms just days before the Budget.This is Money · 23 Oct, 10:20
• Evoke urges no further gambling tax hikes in Budget after 270 shops shutThe William Hill owner said the closure of 270 shops ‘shows the real impact on jobs and livelihoods from higher industry taxation’.Independent Business · 23 Oct, 09:09

In this story: Evoke · William Hill · Bally's Intralot · Flutter · Rachel Reeves · Per Widerstrom · UK

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem