Gambling Protections and Controls Published
30 Apr 2014 03:59 PM
Local authorities given more power to control
the number of betting shops opening in their
area
Gambling firms who want to open up new betting shops on
the high street may find they are stopped from doing so under new plans to give
local authorities more control over the make-up of their high
streets.
Bookies who want to open new shops will have to submit a
planning application and local councils will be able to refuse applications and
stop new betting shops opening in their area.
In
local communities up and down the country concerns have been expressed about
the clustering of betting shops on some high streets. These changes give local
communities a voice in deciding whether they want another shop opening and
support a broader package of common sense measures to enhance and rejuvenate
our high streets.
In
the current system, a betting shop is in the same category as a bank or estate
agent and can open without the need for a planning application when a premises
becomes vacant. The changes to the use classes will mean that local councils
can scrutinise the applications and refuse them where there are grounds to do
so.
DCMS Minister Helen Grant said:
We
want there to be a gambling sector that is vibrant and responsible. The
Government wants to make sure the industry is putting player protection and
social responsibility at the heart of their businesses.
Planning Minister Nick Boles said:
This Government is taking action to support healthy and
vibrant local high streets. This is part of a wider set of measures designed to
get empty and redundant buildings back into productive use and make it easier
for valued town centre businesses like shops, banks and cafés to open
new premises, while giving councils greater powers to tackle the harm to local
amenity caused by a concentration of particular uses.
Communities Minister Stephen Williams
said:
Across the country many people are concerned about the
explosion in the number of betting shops in some high streets. The Coalition
Government is determined to build a stronger economy and a fairer society with
healthy and diverse high streets that aren’t dominated by betting shops,
this is why we are now giving councils tough new powers to prevent the
proliferation of betting shops in their area.
On
top of the planning changes the Government is seeking a step change from the
industry to put measures to protect players at the heart of their businesses
and is looking at controls on gambling advertising. These
include;
-
Requiring betting firms to show how they are complying
with social responsibility codes when they apply for a
license,
-
Ensuring that controls on gambling advertising provide
enough protection – especially to children and the
vulnerable,
-
Working with industry to explore how a Think 25
initiative could help prevent under age access to gambling.
The
Government has also set out plans for improved player protection measures on
Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs). We want players to be in control of the
choices they make and the money they are spending. New measures
include;
-
Requiring FOBT customers who want to bet over £50
in one play to pay over the counter before they can begin to play meaning that
they have to interact with staff;
-
Changing the rules so that at the start of play machine
users must be presented with a choice to set limits on how much they want to
spend and how long they want to play for;
-
Requiring larger operators to offer customer accounts
and encourage take up so that players can track and monitor their spend via
statements;
-
Provide regular warning messages and pauses in play to
encourage players to be more aware of their gambling; and;
-
Strengthening the voluntary self-exclusion system so
that players can make a single request to be banned from betting shops on a
wider basis.
Further information
PDF, 160KB, 9 pages