Keir Starmer has been urged to abolish an “outdated” rule that limits the power of communities to prevent bookmakers and 24-hour slot machine shops from opening on high streets.
In a letter to the prime minister, nearly 300 politicians and campaigners called for an end to the “aim to permit” policy, introduced when Tony Blair’s Labour government liberalised gambling laws in 2005.
The rule places a legal obligation on licensing authorities, such as councils or the Gambling Commission, to err on the side of allowing new gambling premises.
“Our high streets are being hollowed out by a surge of betting shops and 24/7 slot-machine venues, while local people are left powerless,” said the Labour MP Dawn Butler, who coordinated the letter.
