UK gaming reform, such as accepting electronic payments at casinos cannot happen soon enough according to Ranking Group Director of Public Affairs David Williams. Williams, addressing the UK gambling operators in a recent blog on the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) website recently.
In his blog, Casino Reforms are Needed More Than Ever, Williams praises the reforms recommended by the long delayed Government White Paper last year, but questions when the recommended reforms will actually be enacted by lawmakers. “But the big question is ‘when’. When will these policies be delivered? When will the critical modernisations that are needed by the casino sector land in our clubs?,” he wrote.
Williams goes on to point out several other statutory changes that will negatively impact the gaming business such as an upcoming 9.8 percent raise in the National Living Wage and a statutory levy. With those icebergs on the horizon, Williams is looking to real reform to help steer the industry clear of financial struggles.
He correctly observes that, unlike other land-based businesses, casinos cannot push these cost increases on to their customers saying, “In many businesses, these costs would simply be passed to the consumer in terms of higher prices. Casinos can’t do that. We can’t sell a £10 chip for £11.20.”
With time running out, Williams implores British lawmakers to put in place the very policies that were recommended to them by the White Paper. Without serious, and immediate action, British casinos could see some serious problems in the very near future.