UK finance minister Rachel Reeves said gambling firms should contribute their fair share of tax, while leaving open the possibility of higher duties. The IPPR proposed tax increases that it estimated could raise an additional £3.2 billion a year, but Reeves did not endorse those specific rates.
Potential tax changes could alter operators’ costs, while the proposed rates remain distinct from government policy.
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Gambling Commission policy director Ian Angus outlined UK regulatory priorities for 2026–2027 at an Institute of Licensing conference. He said operators were already adjusting to tax changes: general betting duty is due to rise to 25% in April 2027, while remote gaming duty is due to reach 40% in April 2026.
Evolution chief executive Martin Carlesund said higher gambling taxes risk reducing channelisation rates across Europe. He said greater attention should be paid to unprotected customers and that a Gambling Commission investigation remains ongoing, according to reports.
Conservative MP Sir Gavin Williamson warned in a parliamentary Budget debate that higher UK online gambling taxes could put jobs at bet365’s Stoke-on-Trent base at risk. The report says the operator employs about 5,500 people in the city; the tax rate is due to rise from 21% to 40% next April, with a separate digital sports betting increase scheduled for 2027.
Gibraltar's Minister for Justice, Trade and Industry, Nigel Feetham, warned that UK remote gambling tax increases could reduce Gibraltar's public revenue. The UK plans to raise remote gaming duty from 21% to 40% next April and online betting tax from 15% to 25% from April 2027. Feetham said the sector accounts for about 30% of Gibraltar's GDP and around 3,400 jobs.
A PwC report commissioned by the Betting and Gaming Council warned that higher UK gambling taxes could prompt gambling businesses domiciled in the country to leave. PwC said jurisdictions taxing online gambling GGR above 25% generally collected about 9% in tax, compared with about 13% where rates were below 25%; the report was published ahead of the 26 November Budget.