UK raises tax on gaming machines

UK Chancellor John Healey has decided to raise the gaming machine tax from 20% to 25%. The increase is more modest than the steep rise made to the online betting tax last year, but it still puts additional pressure on the sector.

Minister Healey said the extra revenue will be used to support small businesses on high streets. The business rates small business threshold will also rise from 12,000 pounds to 18,000 pounds. Adult gaming centres and vape shops have been excluded from these support measures.

Before the decision, UK MPs had also pressed for the tax increase. Alex Ballinger, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Gambling Reform, and 89 Labour MPs wrote to the minister calling for a rise in the Category B machine tax. Ballinger had proposed an increase of up to 40%.

Industry bodies such as the Betting and Gaming Council had warned that a larger tax increase would lead to shop closures and job losses. Some operators in Great Britain have already scaled back their activities. The Social Market Foundation, however, welcomed the decision and argued that higher-risk categories should be taxed appropriately.