Betfred Co-Founder Bemoans MGD Proposal; Voices Retail Betting Demise

Fred Done has voiced his concerns about how an increase in Machine Games Duty (MGD) could wipe out a plethora of retail betting companies from Britain’s high streets.

The Betfred co-founder announced 132 shop closures over the summer due to the steep hike in gambling taxes. In last year’s budget delivered by then UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves, remote gaming duty (RGD) paid on online casino bets shot up from 21% of gross gambling yield (GGY) to 40%, while in April 2027, general betting duty paid on online sports bets will rise from 15% to 25%, with horseracing exempt.

Assessing the MGD impact

Discussions over MGD have ramped up recently. Reports surfaced earlier this month that the Chancellor, John Healey, was deliberating over raising MGD to 40% of net takings, which would double the current rate of revenue generated on gaming machines in casinos and bingo halls.

Many of those within the betting industry have denounced the MGD proposals, with Rank Group CEO Richard Harris, labelling it as “nonsensical”.

Meanwhile, Entain CEO Stella David wrote to the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, to pull back on plans to carve up the betting industry as the Ladbrokes and Coral owner is embarking on another round of job losses, which could see 400 redundancies made.

Now, Betfred has crunched the numbers and modelled the impact MGD would have on the company. They assert that doubling MGD to 40% could cause a further 495 shop closures, equating to 45% of their overall retail estate.

To further underscore the potential pain, it is thought that as many as 2,475 shop jobs would be cut, while as much as £15.8 million in annual funding for horseracing could be lost.

MGD more than a fiscal grab

Done has seen the effects first-hand of how the betting landscape has been turned on its head by the increase in gambling taxes, explaining it’s never been a ‘rougher gig’. And now he hasn’t held back in lambasting the MGD plan.

In an opinion piece for The Sunday Times, Done wrote:

“Any significant increase to MGD would go beyond a fiscal grab. It would be a raid by the new morality police.

“At our peak, we had 1,680 shops; we’re now down to just over 1,090. Rugby league is gone. We have a verbal agreement to renew our sponsorship of the British Classic horse races for a further three years — but if October’s budget goes the wrong way on MGD, we will have to walk away from those too.”

Avoiding another bloodbath

Retail betting has come under fire over the past few months, and Burnham hasn’t concealed his desire to tax Adult Gaming Centres (AGCs) and betting shops more to provide financial relief to pubs and live music venues. And Done has called on the government to ensure betting remains a viable investment prospect.

He added:

“I’m not asking anyone to feel sorry for bookmakers, but I am asking the government to open its eyes. You can’t squeeze any more out of this industry. Every penny of tax will kill investment, kill jobs, kill horseracing and send problem gamblers into the arms of unlicensed and unregulated black and grey-market operators.

“As a family, we’ve never tried to duck anything. We’ve been on Britain’s high streets since 1967 and we still believe in them. But please, let us breathe. Give us some sort of chance to keep investing.”