Time to tax companies profiting from addiction
As part of this year’s budget the Scottish Greens are calling for a tax on casinos and bookies to compensate for the harm caused by the gambling industry.
This would ensure that venues fuelling problem gambling are forced to fund recovery programmes and services like the NHS which often deal with the consequences of gambling addiction.
This charge, an extra levy on the Non-Domestic Rates of gambling businesses, would build on measures recently announced by the UK Government to tax online gambling companies.
The economic cost of gambling harm in the UK has been estimated to be at least £1 billion per year, though this is regarded as a likely significant underestimate.
The party's Co-leader Ross Greer said:
“Casinos and bookies make a fortune out of addiction and misery. It is time they paid their fair share towards the services forced to deal with the painful consequences of problem gambling.
“The Chancellor has increased tax rates for online gambling companies, giving us the perfect opportunity to do the same for physical gambling venues in Scotland. That’s why Green MSPs have made this proposal to the Scottish Government.
“If these businesses are fuelling and profiting from addiction, then they should also pay towards dealing with the health and social costs for individuals, their families and communities.
“The consequences of problem gambling can be extremely harmful, addictive and life-destroying. And that’s not to mention the damage done to high streets and local economies by the abundance of betting shops owned by companies operating in international tax havens.
“We must prioritise people’s wellbeing over the profits of tax-dodging betting firms. That means taxing those companies causing the most harm.”