UK operators face job cuts and shop closures as RGD hike bites and machine games duty rise looms

Eleven months after then-Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a near-doubling of remote gaming duty (RGD) in her Autumn Budget, the effects on the UK gambling sector are becoming more visible. RGD rose from 21% to 40% in April this year, and a new 25% general betting duty rate for remote betting, up from 15%, takes effect in April 2027. New Chancellor John Healey delivers his first Budget on Wednesday, with an increase in machine games duty (MGD) widely expected.

Gambling Commission data shows 2,154 licensed operators as of 31 March 2026, down 1.1% on a year earlier. That is a smaller fall than in previous years. Total gross gambling yield grew 4.4% to £17.5 billion, while remote casino, betting and bingo activity rose 6.9%. H2 Gambling Capital Managing Director Ed Birkin said he did not think the RGD change was having a material impact on gross gambling revenue yet, and argued that operators are still competing hard for market share.

Cost-cutting has nonetheless followed. Flutter announced a UK and Ireland restructure that could lead to up to 1,400 job cuts. Evoke closed around 200 William Hill shops earlier this year, Betfred plans to close up to 132 stores with more than 600 job losses, and Bet365 said last month it would cut around 340 jobs. Steve Donoghue of Gambling Consultant predicted further redundancies and warned that higher taxes could push customers towards unlicensed operators.

Retail is bearing the brunt. The number of gambling premises in Great Britain fell 2% to 8,081 between April 2025 and March 2026, while retail GGY dropped 3.3% to £2.4 billion. Currently 20%, MGD could double to 40%, as the Social Market Foundation has urged, or rise by as little as 5%. Jenningsbet's Greg Knight said a doubling could close 100 shops, and Betfred owner Fred Done said he believed there would be no betting shops by 2030. The Betting and Gaming Council cited EY modelling that a 40% MGD could cost nearly 1,500 betting shops, 34 casinos and 16,000 jobs.

Online results suggest scale is an advantage. Entain's Q3 showed UK and Ireland online NGR up 14% year on year, and CEO Stella David said the company would be a relative winner and gain retail share. Flutter's UK and Ireland CEO Kevin Harrington likewise said the group is well placed to benefit from share gains as the largest operator in the market.