MPs Appeal for Affordability Checks Implementation to be Halted

A collective of 19 MPs who represent British racecourses have written to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, calling for a postponement to the implementation of affordability checks.

Affordability checks were proposed as part of the government’s 2023 White Paper, which suggested a number of gambling regulatory reforms. Light touch vulnerability checks were initially triggered when a player spent £500 in a month as part of a trial that began in August 2024, and from February 28, 2025, this decreased to £150 spend in a month.

While regulator the Gambling Commission has not yet signed off on the final implementation of financial risk assessments, the British Horeseracing Authority (BHA) understands the Commission is set to sign off on the pilot this month. The Commission’s board is due to meet on Thursday, and is expected to be asked to approve the rollout of the checks.

Cross-party agreement

The group of 19 MPs who have written to Nandy consists of MPs from five different parties. The racecourses represented include Aintree (Dan Carden, Labour), Ascot (Jack Rankin, Conservative), Epsom (Helen Maguire, Liberal Democrats) and Newmarket (Nick Timothy, Conservative). The MPs argue not enough information has been released regarding the pilots of the checks.

The Racing Post has quoted the letter as saying:

"We do not believe there has been sufficient parliamentary scrutiny of this policy and neither has there been a sufficient level of transparency around the results of the Gambling Commission’s pilot of these checks.

"The pilot of affordability checks involving credit reference agencies has proved that the checks cannot be frictionless for racing bettors. The Commission however, seems intent on pursuing this damaging policy despite both the current and former gambling ministers promising that affordability checks would be introduced only if ‘fully frictionless’."

Illegal betting impact

The MPs also alleged illegal betting has changed the landscape of the UK betting market since the White Paper was published. Earlier this month, an H2 Gambling Capital study showed the annual amount staked with illegal gambling operators from UK-based players has more than tripled to £16.6 billion since 2019, growing from £5 billion in 2019.

The letter reads:

"We ask that you urgently intervene to reconsider this policy which was introduced by the previous government in its 2023 Gambling White Paper. The betting landscape has changed significantly since then with a booming illegal market fuelled by increased regulation and taxation on the licensed betting sector.

"Growing numbers of people are already choosing to bet illegally rather than be subjected to intrusive checks more appropriate for securing a mortgage than engaging in a legal pastime enjoyed by millions of Britons."

Possible legal challenge

The letter being sent by the MPs follows a threat from operators to mount a legal challenge against the implementation of the affordability checks. The operators are claiming they would be required to request financial documents, such as payslips, from as many as 480,000 players.

The pledge was made in a separate letter written to Gambling Commission Interim Chair Charles Counsell and also addressed to Nandy, Gambling Minister Baroness Fiona Twycross and the Gambling Commission's Acting Chief Executive Sarah Gardner.

Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) Chief Executive Grainne Hurst claims the checks would be “disproportionate and potentially open to legal challenge."

The Commission has previously said less than 3% of active customer accounts would trigger any checks, but the BGC estimates it would actually impact 5% of accounts, increasing to 10% when only including players who bet every month.