Political pressure to change the laws surrounding the placement of adult gaming centres (AGCs) is continuing to be ratcheted up.
Wigan Council became the latest local authority to lend its weight to the case to change the “aim to permit” laws, which ease the application process for gambling venues, describing AGCs as “robbing the poor to pay the overseas rich”.
Deputy Leader of Wigan Council, Keith Cuncliffe, who put forward a motion to give councils more power to block applications, said: “More than 50% of these applications for adult gaming centres are in the most deprived areas in the country. It’s people in more deprived areas trying to improve their income, to win money.
“Research says that people in deprived areas are more than twice as likely to become addicted to gambling. What we need is to give local authorities much more control over these facilities.”
Scrutiny of the “Aim to Permit” laws, implemented in 2007, has been led by Labour MP Dawn Butler, who has been the vocal leader of the Take Back Control of Our High Streets campaign – advocating for greater control over the placement of gambling venues by local authorities.
“It’s not right. I come with thousands of written complaints from my constituents who want action on the number of gambling venues. But it’s still not enough because of the Aim-to-Permit law,” Butler told the House of Commons earlier this month.
“Let’s be clear, they don’t help high streets. They set up knowing other shops don’t want to be there, because these establishments entice people with free food and drink, teas and coffee. There is no point in having a coffee shop when it’s being given away for free next door.”
Supporters for change demand more control to reject licence applications and consider local debt in planning decisions. As part of his demands, Councillor Cuncliffe called for more weight to be placed on a cumulative impact assessment, as well as greater pressure put on applicants to demonstrate there is a need and demand for new venues.
“Flooding these areas with yet more gaming centres does nothing to support regeneration, aspiration or community well-being,” added Councillor Yvonne Klieve, who seconded the motion.
“These companies are not local enterprises reinvesting in our borough. They are large overseas operators making billions in profit, and they do so by preying on the most vulnerable people in our society.”
Some of the most prominent AGC brands in the UK are Admiral, part of the Austrian group Novomatic, as well as Merkur and Cashino, both part of the German Gauselmann group.
According to the UK Gambling Commission, the number of AGCs in the UK has actually decreased in the last 12 months, reducing from 1,451 to 1,415 in the last financial year – mirroring a wider decline of the UK’s retail sector, as the overall number of retail premises decreased by 1.1% in the financial year.
Supporters of the sector, including from within Butler and Cuncliffe’s Labour party, argue that gambling venues provide much-needed jobs and footfall to a UK high street that has been displaying strong signs of decline in recent years.
Writing an opinion piece for the Betting and Gaming Council, Mary Glindon, Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend, said: “Betting itself is a lawful leisure activity enjoyed by millions of people every month.
“The vast majority do so safely and responsibly, within a framework that is among the most tightly regulated of any consumer-facing industry. That context is important when we consider how betting shops are treated by the government.”
The debate surrounding the scope of Aim to Permit could play a prominent role in political debates leading into May’s local elections. However, a victory could soon be on the cards for councils as a result of the government’s Pride in Place initiative, a community-led regeneration scheme backed by the government.
Part of the programme lays out provisions for the cumulative impact assessments mentioned by Cuncliffe, which will allow local authorities to “take data-driven decisions on premises licences, particularly in areas that have been identified as being vulnerable to gambling-related harm”.
“This will empower local authorities to better shape their high streets and neighbourhoods, and to ensure a healthy mix of premises in their town and city centres,” states the proposal.
Gaming machine reform
More recently, the UKGC yesterday (29 January) announced new rules that will ensure non-compliant gaming machines are removed from premises.
From 29 July, any non-compliant machines must be immediately removed from premises if the UKGC finds that the “manufacture, supply, installation, adaption, maintenance or repair of the machine was not carried out in reliance on a gaming machine technical operating licence, or did not comply with other standards.”
The new mandate is part of the wider implementation of the proposals set out in the 2023 Gambling Act Review White Paper.
