“The increase in MGD should not and cannot be seen in isolation. Politicians who allegedly want to grow the economy have significantly increased the burden of running a business with the uplift in the National Living Wage, pension contributions and the loss of rates relief.
“Because we are one of, if not the only business sector that cannot pass costs on to our customers – due to the almost laughable absence of the so-called Triennial Review – the implications are more significant.
“The fact is that government cannot keep taxing a highly regulated business driven by some prejudicial ideology or because Andy Burnham and his acolytes simply don’t like to see ordinary people having fun on the high street.
“Since the election of the Labour Party, we have had two-years of non-stop negativity. The recommendations contained in the White Paper have been kicked into the long grass, the investment in the high street, the contributions to tourism and the Great British seaside holiday, plus the support we provide for local supply chains have been ignored.
“From an industry perspective we need to establish exactly why the industry has so few political allies. This means having a programme in place to win hearts and minds. We need to be more confident and stop apologising for what we are and what we offer. We should be proud of our commitments to player protection and we need to broadcast the contributions that we make every week of the year to the communities that we serve.
“Game Nation is a fantastic business that has come a long way over a short period of time – and I am not going to jeopardise that.
“We will continue to improve, modernise and invest in our offer and make our venues the best places to be in and to be seen in. In parallel with that we will be supporting the activities of Bacta and the Gambling Business Group to support their lobbying to press home the fact that what’s needed is economic growth and not a compunction to keep on going to the tax well.
“If they do, they will be effectively firing the starting pistol on a race to the bottom with the human consequences felt throughout the country.”
Originally published on Coinslot on November 2, 2026. Republished with permission.