38. Memorandum from the Association
of British Bookmakers (GMB 43)
As you know, the Association of British Bookmakers
(ABB) submitted both written and oral evidence to the Joint Committee
during the course of its scrutiny of the draft Gambling Bill.
You are aware, too, that ABB was fully supportive
of the recommendations contained in the Committee's main Report.
This continues to be the case, and we welcome this opportunity
to comment further on issues that comply with the reconvened Committee's
limited additional remit.
Firstly, we believe that the Committee was correct
to recommend that fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) should
be confined to licensed betting offices and casinos (ie premises
specifically licensed for betting), with stakes and prizes as
set out in the agreement between the Gaming Board and the ABB
to be enshrined in regulations. In our view, this proposal is
an appropriate response to the Government's concerns about machine
proliferation and, as you know, we contend that the best method
of achieving this objective would be for FOBTs to be categorised
as betting terminals rather than gaming machines.
Though it was not part of our initial evidence,
we also support the Committee's proposal that local authorities
should have the ability to prevent small casinos offering betting.
In our view, this would help ensure that, as the Committee observed,
betting remained ancillary to a casino's core activities. It would
also be in line with the Budd Committee's recommendation, which
was accepted by the Government, that there should be controls
on betting, gambling and the consumption of alcohol under the
one roof.
We recognise that the Committee is working to
a tight timescale and have, therefore, kept this note short and
to the point. We would, however, be pleased to provide any further
comment or information that the Committee might request.
July 2004
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