Exhibiting at this conference was particularly positive because of the number of councillors who approached us directly – already aware of FOBTs and eager to know about the steps they could take to halt the spread of betting shops. We heard stories of planning wrangles, legal battles and negative impacts on local businesses and communities. The overwhelming feedback was that of powerlessness, coupled with a determination to change the law, with support coming from Councillors of the three major political parties and independents.
The conference also featured a number of breakout sessions, which highlighted the growing concern for the future of local high streets. A discussion entitled ‘The high street is dead. Long live the high street’, aired the concerns of many who were witnessing the decline of independent retailers in favour of pay day loan and betting shops. Since the legitimisation of FOBTs in the 2005 Gambling Act, the bookmakers have oriented their business model around FOBTs – supposedly an ancillary product – and have, as a result, piled into high streets.
Another fringe event, led by the bookmakers and Cllr Tony Page (LGA Licensing Champion), marked a significant shift in priority, demonstrating how serious the issue of FOBTs has become to local authorities. The Campaign was not invited to speak formally, but was on hand to correct misinformation provided by the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB), which claimed the average bet per spin was £7, when on B2 casino content it is actually £16, and that the number of betting shops is declining, when the reality is the big five operators have opened a further 216 shops in the last year.
The session featured presentations from Dirk Vennix, Chief Executive of the ABB and Richard Orpin, Head of Gambling and Licensing for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. While the ABB attested that much had been done to limit the impact of FOBTs on clustering and problem gambling, many councillors refuted these claims with personal anecdotes of the negative impact the addictive gambling machines are having on local high streets up and down the country. Councillors,
including Clyde Loakes from Waltham Forest, slammed the response of the ABB to their concerns and accused the ABB CEO of “churning out the same lines, time and time again” and failing to “reflect the arms race taking place on the high street between the likes of Paddy Power and William Hill.”
The Campaign has steadfastly argued that the responsible bodies do not impose enough restrictions on betting shops and the FOBTs that cause their proliferation –
which is why it developed its own dedicated objection package– and has helped local councils to table motions, as well as putting pressure on Central Government to reduce the maximum stake on FOBTs and favour the needs of Local Government when it comes to planning applications.
Overwhelming cross-party support was also received for plans to begin a new motion with Newham Council,
a London borough which currently houses 86 betting shops. Newham Council is proposing a motion to reduce the maximum bet per spin on FOBTs to £2, from its current level of £100, which can be wagered every 20 seconds. This motion will be co-signed by as many councils as possible before being submitted to Central Government – and from the strength of reaction at the LGA conference, it looks set to be a well-supported move.
This is just the beginning of the conference season – with the Campaign also due to make appearances at:
•
Labour Conference(21-24 September, Manchester)
•
Conservative Conference(28 September – 1 October, Birmingham)
•
Liberal Democrat Conference(4-8 October, Glasgow)
Why not come and pay us a visit? We’ll be continuing to spread the word and raise awareness of the problems FOBTs cause – and we won’t stop until we prevail.