The Liberal Democrats have added their voice to the debate around gambling taxes and reform, proposing a doubling of the Remote Gaming Duty in order to see the online sector “pay their fair share.”
Announcing that the party has passed a new policy to put public health at the heart of gambling regulation, Cheltenham MP Max Wilkinson called for RGD to be increased from 21 percent to 42 percent.
“As the MP for a town with a racecourse, I’m no stranger to gambling,” said Wilkinson. “As a liberal I view this as both a freedom-to and a freedom-from issue.”
“As liberals, we believe adults should be free to gamble if they choose. But freedom also means freedom from harm.”
Noting that access to online gambling is “easier, faster, and riskier than ever before,” Wilkinson called for a range of measures to increase the burden on remote operators, while announcing a slew of regulatory proposals for the land-based sector.
The Lib Dems’ new policy includes plans to create a statutory, independent Gambling Ombudsman “with real power,” curb advertising, marketing, and sponsorship, enforce affordability checks, and give local councils the same powers over regulating gambling venues as they have over pubs.
“These reforms would not only save lives, they’d raise hundreds of millions of pounds to help fund NHS treatment for gambling addiction and prevent future harm.”
And then there’s the Labour deputy leadership contender
Labour deputy leadership candidate Lucy Powell has urged the party to raise gambling taxes to fund the abolition of the two-child benefit cap.
The Manchester Central MP, who is competing with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson to succeed Angela Rayner, argued that Labour must show “who we’re fighting for” by prioritising policies to reduce child poverty.
Writing in the Mirror, Powell cited former Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s support for proposals from the Institute for Public Policy Research.
“I want us to be clear that our objective is to lift children out of poverty and that will mean we need to lift the cap,” commented Powell. “Gordon Brown has set out ways of raising money from gambling firms which should get careful consideration.”
