Dawn Butler becomes deputy chair of the gambling reform parliamentary group

Dawn Butler, Labour MP for Brent East, has been announced as the new deputy chair of the Gambling Reform All-Party Parliamentary Group (GR APPG). Butler is among the leading figures campaigning for greater government intervention in the gambling industry in the UK. Her work focuses on player protection and the retail gaming space.

Butler was previously influential in the lobbying effort against the "Aim to Permit" rule. The rule was scrapped by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, and local authorities were given more power over licensing physical venues in their areas. In a statement, the group said it would continue working to secure stronger protections for individuals, families and communities.

The appointment comes as the tax debate heats up. The group's co-chair Alex Ballinger, in a letter signed by 90 Labour MPs, asked Chancellor John Healey to raise Machine Games Duty (MGD) in next week's budget. The stated reasoning is that the social impact of gambling harms should be covered by public revenue.

The industry, for its part, argues that new taxes on top of the increases introduced in 2025 would hurt thousands of employees and the high street economy. According to a YouGov survey commissioned by Entain, the owner of Coral and Ladbrokes, 90 percent of betting shop customers combine their visit with spending elsewhere. In the survey of 1,475 adults, 54 percent of respondents said they do this on most visits, and 68 percent saw betting shops as an important part of the high street.