Dawn Butler Named Vice Chair of Gambling Reform APPG

Dawn Butler is the new Vice Chair of the Gambling Reform All-Party Parliamentary Group. She's the Labour MP for Brent East. Her appointment lands at a pointed moment: the cross-party group is turning up the heat on the Treasury over gambling taxes. Butler has spent years arguing for tighter state control of the sector. Player protection sits at the centre of that argument, and she has focused specifically on retail gaming.

She was a leading voice against the 'Aim to Permit' rule. PM Andy Burnham later scrapped it, handing local authorities more say over licensing land-based venues in their own constituencies. The APPG welcomed the move. "We are delighted to have Dawn take on this new role and look forward to continuing our work together to deliver stronger protections for individuals, families and communities across the UK," the group said.

Her promotion comes while the APPG is pressing the government hard. Co-Chair Alex Ballinger MP has written to Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey, with 90 Labour MPs signing on, calling for a rise in Machine Games Duty in next week's Budget. Their case rests on one claim: the social cost of gambling harm should be paid for out of higher public service revenue. Healey is reportedly looking to cap MGD at 25%.

The industry's counter-argument hasn't changed. Operators say they already build safer play into product design. Piling more tax on top of the 2025 increases, they argue, will cost thousands of gambling jobs and damage the wider high street economy.

That campaign has gone into overdrive in recent weeks. The Betting and Gaming Council and the big retail operators have been the loudest. This morning Entain, which owns Coral and Ladbrokes, published a YouGov study to back its position. The survey of 1,475 UK adults found that 90% of betting shop customers pair their visit with spending in other establishments. Among all respondents, 54% said they combined a bookies trip with other spending on most or nearly every visit. And 68% agreed betting shops are a key part of the high street.

Bejay Patel, Entain's Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, didn't mince words. "This research confirms what our hard-working colleagues know to be true – betting shops are a cornerstone of every high street and provide a boost to local business," he said. "We need to recognise the important contribution betting shops make to our economy and local communities alike."

The study forms part of Entain's 'What's at Stake' campaign, run against further gambling tax rises. The company warns that higher duties will trigger shop closures and job losses. It also points out that closures are already happening across the sector after last year's Budget.

For affiliates and retail-facing operators, the practical read is simple: the tax fight is now a high street fight, and the MP count on both sides matters more than the press releases. Butler's elevation gives the reform camp a seasoned campaigner in a senior slot. The Budget response will show whether 90 signatures and a YouGov poll move the Chancellor at all.