New Fixed Odds Betting Terminals loss calculator launched by the FOBT APPG shows the extent of losses on FOBTs with £57 lost every second and £3,424 lost every minute by gamblers.

The Fixed Odds Betting Terminals All Party Parliamentary Group has today launched a loss calculator on its website http://www.fobt-appg.com/

This calculator shows the money that gamblers are losing each day on FOBT machines and the total amount lost on FOBT machines since the end of the Government’s consultation on gaming machines which closed on 23 January 2018. Every day that the Government delay making a decision on FOBTs the losses mount up by £5m. This money is also often lost by those who can least afford it.

The total amount of money being lost by gamblers on FOBTs is:

£57.09 a second

£3,424 a minute

£205,500.000 an hour

£5m a day

£34.6m a week

£150m a month and

£1.8bn a year

This money which is being lost by gamblers and paid to betting companies could pay for the following each year:

77,646 nurses

58,250 police officers

63,988 secondary school teachers

£61,339 fireman

Carolyn Harris MP, the Chair of the FOBT APPG said:

“The FOBT loss calculator shows the amount of money being lost by gamblers every second of every day, often by those who can least afford it. Every day that the Government delays making a decision on the FOBT stake, the amount of money lost grows by £5m. This is unacceptable.”

“The Government must not delay any longer. The stake on FOBTs must be reduced immediately to £2 to prevent further harm to the most vulnerable in our society”

Ronnie Cowan, the Vice Chair of the FOBT APPG said:

“I very much welcome this calculator which shows the magnitude of the losses that are happening as a result of FOBTs. As the Secretary of State himself has said, FOBTs are a ‘social blight’ on all our communities and the Government must reduce the stake to £2 with immediate effect.”

Notes to Editors

1. Carolyn Harris MP is the Member of Parliament for Swansea East. She is the Chair of the All Party Group on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals, a Group she founded in 2016.
2. Ronnie Cowan is the MP for Inverclyde and Vice Chair of the APPG as well as being an active campaigner on FOBTs.
3. The loss calculator is calculated using Gambling Commission figures from April 2014 to March 2017 and based on Licensed Betting Shop opening hours of 12 hours per day Monday to Saturday and 7 hours per day on a Sunday.
4. The FOBT APPG has undertaken two inquiries into FOBTs and written to the Prime Minster imploring her to act on these machines.
5. Further information on the FOBT APPG can be found at http://www.fobt-appg.com/
6. For further inquiries please contact the secretariat of the Group Morgan@interelgroup.com 07973 884797

Betting firm William Hill has been hit with a £6.2m penalty package for breaching anti-money-laundering and social responsibility regulations. The penalty is the second biggest imposed by the Gambling Commission.

Carolyn Harris, MP for Swansea East and Chair of the Fixed Odds Betting Terminals All Party Parliamentary Group, comments:

“I was deeply concerned to hear to hear that the betting firm William Hill has been fined £6.2m for breaching anti-money-laundering and social responsibility regulations.

These are very serious breeches which the Gambling Commission indicate demonstrate systemic problems at the company.

William Hill, along with the wider gambling industry must take their responsibilities in terms of dealing with money laundering and problem gambling seriously.

The Government can also act decisively to minimise risks through reducing the stake on FOBTs to £2 with immediate effect.”

Notes to Editors

1. Carolyn Harris MP is the Member of Parliament for Swansea East. She is the Chair of the All Party Group on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals, a Group she founded in 2016.

1. The FOBT APPG has undertaken two inquiries into FOBTs and written to the Prime Minster imploring her to act on these machines.

1. For further inquiries please contact the secretariat of the Group Katherine.Morgan@interelgroup.com 07973 884797