Joan Humble is the MP for Blackpool North and Fleetwood, and after a tour of a local bingo club’s facilities, she has pledged support for the aiming UK land based bingo industry. And while this is not an online bingo story, the controversy regarding taxation in this industry has waged for years now. If the land based industry does not protest against it and get support from the online industry, no doubt, at some point in time this issue will also affect online bingo.
Mrs. Humble has joined a long line of MP’s in the UK who have shown serious support for Bingo. It is a very social activity and sometimes the only social outlet that the lonely or elderly have which is local to them. It has been scientifically proven by research that when a bingo club is closed down, many people lose the only social activity they participated in, and this is unhealthy.
Bingo in the UK is taxed far higher than other gambling activities, plus between session games were subject to VAT. Although this VAT can be claimed back, this was not brought to light until one of the UK giants in this industry took customs and excise to the EU Commission courts, and won their case and their claim.
Political attention needs to be focused on the plight of this industry. They are already struggling against the smoking and the new gambling act. That bingo which is classified a soft gaming activity, should be taxed higher than casinos which provide hard gambling activities, is completely mystifying to many people, and the Government doesn’t seem to care to justify this action either.
The bingo industry is currently in a second wave of a campaign to fight against Government intentions to increase taxation from 15% to 22%?? This industry is already troubled and all operators are concerned that this could be the death knoll of many bingo halls. In the past three years 117 bingo halls have already closed down and two of these have been in Joan Humbles constituency. She says that they need to do whatever they can to ensure the remaining clubs remain open. Let’s hope she sticks to her word! In the meantime, if you have lost a bingo club, get online, play at Party Bingo, they are waiting to give you a very warm welcome.
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