In a blistering attack on online betting, the UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves slammed iGaming today and hiked remote gambling taxes as she formally unveiled her Autumn Budget before a packed Parliament.
“Remote gaming is associated with the highest levels of harm, and so I am increasing Remote Gaming Duty from 21 percent to 40 percent, with duty on online betting increasing from 15 percent to 25 percent,” the under-fire Chancellor told MPs.
“Taken together, my reforms to gambling tax will raise over £1 billion per year by 2031,” affirmed Reeves, who showed little effect from an embarrassing leak of the full Budget details earlier today, before her formal announcement in the Commons.
This is yet another chapter in a saga of humiliating leaks and speculations that have dogged both the Budget run-up and the incumbent Labour government since taking power 14-months-ago.
Reeves also revealed that the current 10 percent duty on bingo will be abolished and that there will be NO changes to taxes on in-person gambling or betting on horse racing, as once feared.
Casinos, Horse Racing Swerve New Taxes
Casino gaming duty bands have also been frozen until 2026-27.
There was little surprise in the much-touted content of the tax rises, which have been well flagged for months and championed by former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown, a powerful coalition of some 100 backbench government MPs and left-wing social reform think-tanks.
All in all Chancellor Reeves announced some £26 billion in tax rises.
Also planned is a recurring Mansion Tax on houses that are worth more than £2 million, to be paid directly to the government and on top of current Council Tax.
But there are to be no changes in National Insurance contributions, VAT or the basic rate of income tax.
A full response to the new gambling tax measures from industry stakeholders will follow soonest.
