Betfred chair Fred Done has warned all 1,287 of the operator’s retail shops could close should gambling taxes be increased dramatically in next month’s Autumn Budget.
Speaking to the BBC, Done said the potential shuttering of Betfred’s entire retail estate could put 7,500 jobs at risk.
Done’s comments came after Betfred CEO Joanne Whittaker told The Sunday Times there were people “in the Treasury who don’t understand our business”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has indicated that there will be tax increases next month, with think tanks suggesting remote gaming duty should jump from 21% to 50%.
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has suggested general betting duty should increase from 15% to 30%, in a move it claims could support removing the two-child benefit cap.
Done said: “It [tax] doesn’t even need to go up to 50%. If it went up to anywhere like 40% or even 35% there is no profit in the business. We would have to close it down. I’m talking job losses. We’re talking probably 7,500.
“Once the [UK] industry is closed down, it’s gone. People will still bet, but they’ll bet offshore with it. There’s plenty of bookmakers offshore to take the bets, who don’t pay anything to this country.”
Biggest threat
The 82-year-old also said duty hikes were the “biggest threat” to his business since he opened his first shop in 1967. “On a 1-10 scale it’s a 10, all the alarm bells are ringing here.”
Done added that increases to employer National Insurance contributions and the minimum wage of £12.21 for those age 21 and over had added £20m in costs to the Warrington-based business.
In Betfred’s most recently available filings on Companies House for the 12 months ending 1 October 2023, revenue hit £908m, up 25% from £723.2m. However, post-tax loss came to £71.7m.
Betfred’s warning over the threat to its retail estate came after both Flutter and evoke said shop closures were in the offing.
Evoke, the parent company behind William Hill, said up to 200 shops could close should tax hikes come into play.
Meanwhile, Flutter blamed “challenging market conditions” for the announcement that 57 Paddy Power shops are to close.
Posting on LinkedIn, Anthony Kaminskas, the CEO of on-course and challenger online bookmaker AK Bets, wrote: “Well done to Betfred’s Joanne Whittaker for telling it like it is regarding retail betting in the UK.
“Now we need the online giants to step up and explain the impact publicly. Tell them. Explain. It’s no good little old AK Bets banging the drum. The big boys need to step up.”
The post Betfred warns entire UK retail estate could close if taxes hiked first appeared on EGR Intel.
Founder Fred Done tells the BBC that increases from the Treasury could result in 7,500 jobs being put at risk
The post Betfred warns entire UK retail estate could close if taxes hiked first appeared on EGR Intel.