The Northern Ireland Assembly’s All-Party Group on Reducing Harm Related to Gambling has written a letter to the Chancellor, expressing grave concern over Treasury proposals to ‘harmonise’ tax rates for different forms of remote gambling. The group warns that this move could potentially undermine efforts to reduce gambling-related harm across the UK.
In a strongly worded letter, the All-Party Group warned that harmonisation could effectively encourage gambling companies to shift customers from less harmful products such as sports betting and horse racing towards highly addictive online casino and slot games.
The letter, written by APG Chairperson, Philip McGuigan MLA, states that the proposals contradict The Labour Party’s manifesto pledge to reduce harm related to gambling.
