Arena Racing Company (Arc) chief executive Martin Cruddace criticized the Gambling Commission in response to new figures which showed that in a statement written on behalf of British Racing stakeholders. Online betting turnover fell by £3 billion in the reality of the sport in the last two years.
Statement in full
We will be writing to the Foreign Secretary and the Prime Minister shortly to outline our key concerns about these figures. Frankly, the Gambling Commission looks increasingly irresponsible and out of control. Furthermore, it continues to fail to show evidence of the impact of current affordability measures on problem gambling.
It is well established that the commission wants to introduce affordable checks for a minimum amount per day, similar to many everyday products, such as a child’s Happy Meal at McDonald’s or a movie ticket.
The previous government had agreed with the commission and the betting industry on a number of more reasonable interim measures, which have still not been implemented under the guise of questions related to the fight against money laundering.
Similarly, the commission released a UK gambling survey in July this year, although it admitted it had serious doubts about the reliability of the data. We have ended up in a somewhat dystopian situation where the commission has insisted that the survey not be used to estimate problem gambling rates, which is exactly what many gambling lobby groups were quick to do.
Furthermore, the Gambling Commission has a well-documented history of awarding millions of pounds of public funds to anti-gambling activist groups. Some of these funds have been used to support campaigning and propaganda, which is in direct violation of the Commission’s own rules.
I and everyone in British racing is very concerned that the Gambling Commission is more concerned about attending overseas conferences than the wholly unnecessary decline of our great sport and industry at home.
We all imagine that every racing region around the world, none of which has any concept of affordability, is looking at the UK in bewilderment and wondering how our government can oversee such a decline in a sport that transcends and brings so much joy to all of society, billions alongside our economy.
Read this next:
British sport has been blamed for the decline of the sport at the door of an “overcontrolled and irresponsible” Gambling Commission
Sign up to receive In the noseour important daily newsletter from Racing Post. Your unforgettable morning feed, directly to your email every morning.