BGC members donate £172.5m over four years to tackle problem gambling
Trade body says contributions have increased since 2020, while reiterating support for switch to a statutory levy of 1% on GGY
The Betting and Gaming Council’s (BGC) members have donated a record £172.5m over the last four years to deal with problem gambling and gambling-related harm.
Four years ago, the trade body’s four largest members – Flutter Entertainment, Entain, bet365 and evoke – pledged to contribute more to research, prevention and treatment (RPT) and have since increased their donations from £100m to £122.5m between 2020 and 2024.
An additional £10m was donated by BGC members to YGAM and GamCare to help deliver their Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme, which supports more than two million 11 to 19-year-olds, bringing donations from the largest operators up to £132.5m.
Alongside a £10m donation per year from other BGC members and UK regulated licensees, contributions over the past four years have reached roughly £172.5m.
This year, BGC members expect to donate a further £50m in RPT funding to a range of charities.
With the release of the latest figures, BGC executive director of standards and innovation Wes Himes said the huge investment from BGC members will continue.
Himes also reiterated the trade body’s support for a statutory levy to fund gambling harm prevention and treatment, consisting of 1% of gross gaming yield from online operators and 0.4% for land-based and retail shops.
Himes said: “Around 22.5 million people in this country enjoy a regular flutter, and the overwhelming majority do so perfectly safely and responsibly.
“Our mission to raise standards carries on strong and these figures demonstrate our actions are backed by significant financial contributions which are making a real difference.
“Our members have no say on how these funds are spent and RPT donations only go to independent organisations accredited by the Gambling Commission to deliver these critical services.
“For the BGC and our members, the priority is ensuring the money reaches these charities doing exceptional work in prevention and treatment and funds truly independent, evidence-led research.
“While this voluntary levy has delivered record funding, the BGC supports the replacement of the current levy scheme with a mandatory one, but the delivery of this new scheme must ensure future funding security for the third sector which is delivering such excellent work.
“As we go forward, this huge investment will continue, underlining this sector’s unrivalled commitment to responsible betting and gaming.”
The BGC’s message comes days after cross-party group Peers for Gambling Reform called on the Labour government to implement the statutory levy within the first 100 days of the new parliament.
While last week, the trade body said it was keen to work with Labour DCMS duo Lisa Nandy and Stephanie Peacock on implementing white paper changes.
Two months ago, the Horserace Betting Levy Board said it expected to receive a record contribution of £105m in levy payments from BGC members for 2023-24 – a £5m increase on the sum collected the previous year.