What Views Does Liz Truss Have on Gambling?
One of the biggest news stories in the United Kingdom at the moment is who will be the next Prime Minister. Following a series of scandals and let-downs by current PM Boris Johnson, he resigned from his position as leader of the government on July 7, staying on as caretaker until a new leader of the Conservative Party is elected. This led to a bit of confusion in Parliament, as various topics of discussion, new laws and so on, have had to be halted until a new country leader is decided upon. This includes the gambling white paper, which has been delayed and delayed and delayed for one reason or another.
Now the white paper will not be published until the new Prime Minister is chosen. A selection of people put themselves forward to become the next leader of the United Kingdom, including Suella Braverman, Tom Tugendhat, Penny Mordaunt, Kemi Badenoch, Grant Schapps and Sajid Javid. Yet as the days and weeks passed by, the candidates were whittled down by the Tories to the current remaining two – former chancellor Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.
These two candidates have featured in many campaigns for themselves and have debated various topics on television for everyone to see. Rishi Sunak’s main focus has been to explain that he will restore trust in the government but that he won’t reduce taxes (as the UK cannot afford it, he says), while Truss pledged to end the controversial national insurance increase if she is made PM. She said she would start cutting taxes from the very first day she is elected into office, if that becomes the case.
Many people believe Truss will beat out Sunak and become the UK’s next Prime Minister. So much so that she has been backed by the ex-gambling minister Chris Philp to run the country. But what are Liz Truss’ views on gambling in the UK and has she noted anything that she would do where the white paper on gambling reform is concerned?
Chris Philp Voices Support for Truss in Mid-July
The UK Gambling Commission has been trying to overhaul the gambling landscape in the country since it sought out information and ideas back at the end of 2020. With a white paper on specific legislation overhauls originally to be released in December of 2021, operators within the industry and campaigners speaking out against the liberal laws, have both been kept on tenterhooks. After a first delay in 2021, the white paper’s publication has been pushed back time and time again, leaving some wondering if it will ever actually be brought to light at all.
The most recent delay came about because of the confusion within the government of the United Kingdom, and it has been stated that until a new leader is elected in Boris Johnson’s place, the white paper cannot be decided upon nor published. Prior to that, senior Tory members had been against certain parts of the new legislation, which delayed the release of the white paper. And this timeframe provides even more opportunity for those against reform to try and undo the efforts that campaigners have worked for in recent times.
A further blow was felt by those campaigners midway through July when Liz Truss received the backing of the former gambling minister Chris Philp. He resigned from his position in Parliament under Boris Johnson and voiced his support for Truss while Badenoch and Mordaunt were still in the running to take over.
Despite the favoured candidate by gambling companies being Mordaunt, Philp mentioned that Truss has always been his preference, and since Mordaunt’s elimination from the race, the Foreign Secretary has potentially also moved up in the estimations of the gambling world. Of course, it begs the question of what Liz Truss’ views are on gambling for the former gambling minister to support her.
As it happens, both she and Mordaunt have stated that they are against the introduction of additional restrictions on the gambling industry. Truss said that she believes tightening the reins on the gambling scene could push customers towards the unlicensed, more underground alternative.
Furthermore, both Truss and Mordaunt seem to be staunchly against the option of providing local governments with the power to regulate retail betting shops as well as fixed odds betting terminals. And one final point to highlight is that they oppose the idea of requiring gambling operators to ban those customers who have self-excluded.
Yet the successor to Philp, Damian Collins, outrightly showed his support for Mordaunt, and nobody else. He had little to say on Liz Truss. But with Mordaunt out of the race for the Prime Minister’s position now, he will have to back one or the other remaining candidates.
An Uncertain Future for the Gambling Act in the UK
A selection of amendments to the Gambling Act in the United Kingdom were rumoured to be included in the aforementioned white paper. Some of the adjustments would have created quite the turnaround in the industry, with sports teams not able to wear the logos of gambling companies on their kits and maximum bets on online casino games potentially being introduced through the white paper.
Unfortunately, several key Members of Parliament have formed certain unofficial pro-gambling parties, and this has led to the fears that some of the measures spoken of will be watered down, so to speak. Former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan-Smith said that anyone who opposes the reforms would end up meeting him in an all-out war, should the review of the gambling legislation fail to meet expectations.
And Smith is potentially right to be concerned about it, considering that not only the gambling industry but that Philp and Collins, have voiced support for candidates who are not actually fond of gambling reforms. Rishi Sunak was the only candidate from the final four who said he would be open to hearing more on the proposed reforms. He has previously spoken with the horse racing sector and has discussed both the industry and affordability measures relating to it.
The next Prime Minister won’t be chosen until September at the earliest, so the likelihood is that the white paper won’t be published until then, either. It’s difficult to say what will happen with this for the moment, but let’s see what paths the final two candidates are more likely to take with regard to the gambling scene in the United Kingdom.
The Routes of Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak
The aforementioned Philp wasn’t always behind Liz Truss as the perfect candidate for the job. In fact, he originally voiced his support for Sajid Javid, the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. However, he withdrew his candidacy prior to the first ballot even taking place. It could be said that Philp doesn’t particularly have form for backing an outright winner. He was also one of the very last people to turn his back on Boris Johnson, but his support of Truss already provides an insight into how she is likely to proceed with things if she becomes Prime Minister.
Of course, this is pretty much under the assumption that Truss will back Philp in the same way that he has done with her. Reports do suggest that Truss has voted against heightened gambling restrictions, as mentioned previously. She is a candidate who supposedly has a love for freedom, and one MP has even gone as far to say that “freedom” is her favourite word to use. It cannot be said whether or not this extends to a particular dislike for increased restrictions on the gambling industry, of course.
Where Sunak is concerned, he did voice concerns earlier on in 2022 about where the review of the Gambling Act could be heading. Queries were asked by Sunak last year about the proposed affordability checks that were said to be a part of the gambling white paper. His constituency in the county of North Yorkshire plays host to Catterick Racecourse though, so there is likely to be some sort of influence on him where this is concerned.
Discussions have certainly been held about whether or not sports such as horse racing will be exempt from any severe measures within the gambling review. Doubtless, some of Sunak’s constituents will be lobbying him to back the horse track and the sport in general if he is to become Prime Minister.
Yet it may not all be plain sailing for the gambling industry if Liz Truss is indeed elected. The aforementioned Sir Iain Duncan-Smith has said that he is supportive of her rise to leader of the country. He has mentioned that she is “keen to do something” when it comes to gambling. Yet when asked about her opponent, Duncan-Smith said he didn’t know what Rishi’s views were on the industry. He did have another reason for backing Truss – the fact that she has said she will take China on over various issues, whereas Sunak mentioned he would revive talks with the country regarding an economic trade deal.
In a further update on that, Duncan-Smith is lined up to be the Chief Whip for Liz Truss if she does become the Prime Minister. With his views on the gambling industry well-known, he could end up steering her towards a much more conservative scene. Truss has also received backing from Sajid Javid, Therese Coffey (who would likely head up the Cabinet Office) and James Cleverley (who could likely take over Truss’ role as Foreign Secretary).
History Behind the White Paper
Chris Philp may have resigned as gambling minister and stated that he was “gutted” at the time when the white paper wasn’t published, but he is actually responsible for that being the case in the first place. In September of 2021, he insisted that he revisit the already well-advanced review of the Gambling Act, which had been started and led by his predecessor John Whittingdale. He was on the verge of publishing that white paper in the autumn, but Philp opted to take a closer look at everything involved in it, delaying proceedings.
Of course, Philp’s decision to do this was not an unreasonable one, considering that changes to betting and gaming is not something that should be done lightly. Reform needs to be well considered, with all ideas pondered over properly. Changes should be proportionate and carefully targeted towards those who are at risk or already suffering from problem gambling. And as Truss has stated herself, it would be an insane outcome if players were pushed away from the legal gambling scene in the UK to the unregulated overseas sector instead.
A new PM and gambling minister this time around surely wouldn’t have much trouble in making rapid progress with the white paper, though. Just a small number of concerns remain prominent in Whitehall regarding it, so there is little doubt that it is now easy to deliver a transformative selection of reforms, whilst still maintaining the gambling industry in the country that supports around 120,000 jobs and brings roughly $4.5 billion in tax money in.
Many gambling operators themselves are not completely against reform, either. There has long been calls for an ombudsman to improve consumer redress, as well as the need for enhanced spending checks online. In fact, some operators have already taken it upon themselves to proceed with such increased checks, but the key behind this is to make sure they aren’t too intrusive on players.
Time will tell what Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak intends to do with regard to the gambling industry once one of them is elected to the position of Prime Minister. The hope is that any reform caters to both players and operators.
