BGC Launches Campaign to Shield Britain's Betting Shops from Further Tax Hikes

By jili tutorial · September 30, 2026

BGC Launches Campaign to Shield Britain’s Betting Shops from Further Tax Hikes

A New Push to Protect the High Street Staple

The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), the trade body representing the UK’s regulated betting and gaming industry, has officially launched a new campaign designed to safeguard Britain’s betting shops from additional tax burdens. The initiative, titled “Back Our Betting Shops,” went live on 28 September 2026 and is set to highlight the stories of staff, customers, and communities who depend on these businesses every day.

At its core, the campaign seeks to push back against proposals for higher machine games duty—a tax levied on takings from gaming machines in betting shops, bingo halls, arcades, and casinos. The BGC argues that such increases could deliver a devastating blow to an already-struggling high street sector.

The Scale of the Problem: Thousands of Shops Already Gone

The campaign’s message is stark: Britain’s betting shops are disappearing at an alarming rate. According to the BGC:

More than 3,000 betting shops have closed since 2019
These closures have resulted in over 16,000 lost jobs
The remaining shops still support more than 36,000 jobs across the country

These figures paint a clear picture of a sector in contraction long before any new tax measures were even tabled. The BGC warns that further fiscal pressure could accelerate this decline dramatically.

What the Campaign Covers: People, Not Just Balance Sheets

The “Back Our Betting Shops” campaign is deliberately people-focused. It aims to share real stories from:

Long-serving staff and shop managers
Apprentices beginning their careers in the sector
Regular customers who rely on betting shops as social spaces
Local community partners and organisations

By centring the human element, the BGC hopes to counter the perception of betting shops as faceless corporate entities. Instead, the campaign positions them as integral parts of the social fabric—particularly in towns and city suburbs where other amenities have already disappeared.

The Tax Threat: Machine Games Duty at 40%

The campaign is directly aimed at machine games duty (MGD), the tax applied to the net takings from gaming machines. The specific concern centres on a proposal from the Social Market Foundation (SMF), which in June 2026 called for a new 40% tax band on Category B machines. These are the higher-stakes terminals found in betting shops, bingo clubs, arcades, and casinos.

EY Modelling: A Lose-Lose Outcome

To underline the risks, the BGC commissioned economic modelling from EY. The findings suggest that raising MGD to 40% would have severe consequences:

Up to 16,000 jobs at risk
Nearly 1,500 betting shops threatened with closure
Up to 34 casinos potentially forced to shut their doors

Crucially, the modelling also indicates that the policy would be self-defeating for the Treasury, leaving the Exchequer £124 million worse off than under the current regime. In other words, the tax hike would not only damage the industry—it would fail to generate the expected revenue.

Why Now? The Autumn 2025 Budget Context

The Autumn 2025 Budget notably left machine games duty unchanged, suggesting the government was not then minded to increase the tax. However, the SMF’s June 2026 recommendation has reignited the debate, prompting the BGC to act swiftly with its campaign to head off any potential policy shift in the next fiscal cycle.

The Human Cost: What’s at Stake

Grainne Hurst, Chief Executive of the BGC, framed the issue in stark terms:

“We have already seen thousands of shops close and thousands of jobs disappear. Further tax increases would not just show up on a balance sheet. They could mean more people losing their livelihoods, more empty shopfronts and more communities losing businesses they value.”

Hurst described betting shops as “not just businesses” but community hubs—places where people gather, interact, and maintain social connections. For many, particularly older or isolated individuals, the betting shop may be one of the few remaining local venues that don’t require spending money to participate.

A Track Record of Supporting British Sport

The BGC also highlighted the sector’s contributions to British sport. Betting shops channel funding into:

Horse racing, through the statutory Horserace Betting Levy
Rugby league, through sponsorships of clubs and competitions

These contributions would also be put at risk if further shop closures reduced the industry’s overall footprint and profitability.

Industry in Turmoil: Operators Already Cutting Costs

The campaign arrives amid a wave of voluntary restructuring by major operators, independent of any tax changes:

Operator	Date Announced	Details
Evoke (William Hill)	May 2026	Closed around 200 shops; ended June with 1,024 shops, down from 1,302 a year earlier
Betfred	31 July 2026	Opened consultation on 132 closures and more than 600 job cuts
Flutter (Paddy Power)	3 September 2026	Up to 100 UK and Ireland shops under review for closure; approximately 400 roles at risk

These figures suggest that the industry is already rationalising ahead of potential regulatory or fiscal changes. The BGC argues that additional tax increases would only accelerate this trend, turning a managed decline into a rapid collapse.

A Glimpse Abroad: The Romanian Approach

Interestingly, the BGC’s framing draws parallels with an entirely different market. In Romania, the gambling operator Superbet faced its own existential threat from Emergency Ordinance 7/2026, which empowered local councils to ban gambling venues in their areas. Several councils did so, forcing Superbet’s agencies to close.

However, rather than shutting up shop and making staff redundant, the company announced on 31 August 2026 that it would convert the affected venues into “Home of Superliga” spaces. These are community-focused venues where people can watch football together—but crucially, no betting is offered.

Superbet described these as community spaces, echoing the exact same language the BGC uses for Britain’s betting shops. The move demonstrates that, when given the opportunity, operators are willing to pivot toward community-focused models. But it also raises a question: if betting shops in the UK were forced to remove gambling entirely, would they still be viable? The BGC’s answer is clearly no—which is precisely why it is fighting the proposed tax changes.

Looking Ahead: What Happens Next

The “Back Our Betting Shops” campaign is set to run through the autumn and beyond, with stories and case studies being shared across social media and local press. The BGC will likely target MPs and policymakers with data-driven arguments, aiming to build cross-party opposition to any MGD increase in the next Budget.

The key dates to watch:

Ongoing: Campaign activations and story collection
Next Budget (expected late 2026): Whether the Treasury heeds the BGC’s warning
2027: If a 40% band is introduced, the EY modelling suggests the industry will face its biggest shock yet

Conclusion: A Defining Moment for the Sector

The battle over machine games duty is not just about taxation—it is about the future of a high street institution. With thousands of shops already closed and thousands more jobs lost, the industry is fighting for its survival. The BGC’s campaign frames this as a broader social issue, one where the consequences of a tax rise would ripple far beyond the industry itself.

Whether the Treasury listens remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: the betting shop of 2026 is not the same as the betting shop of 2019—and without action, there may be far fewer of them left.