Key Takeaways:
- Yougov poll for BGC finds 65 percent of UK bettors would refuse to submit financial documents
- British Horseracing Authority letter to Lisa Nandy signed by 408 industry figures
- UK Remote Gaming Duty rose from 21 percent to 40 percent on April 1, 2026
408 Racing Figures Urge Culture Secretary to Pause Rollout
The findings, published on April 8, land as the UK Gambling Commission prepares to sign off on its financial risk assessment framework next month, with full operator compliance expected by the third quarter of the year. The checks are the most contentious element of the 2023 Gambling Act Review White Paper, which set out the government’s plan to overhaul gambling regulation for the first time in nearly two decades.
The BGC poll is yet another data point alongside a piece of research industry body obtained through a Freedom of Information request on from an earlier Gambling Commission survey. Covering more than 12,000 respondents, that internal study found 77 percent opposed financial risk checks outright, with only 14 percent of frequent bettors willing to share financial information with the authorities.
Financial vulnerability checks are already live across UK-licensed operators. These are triggered when a player’s net deposits reach £150 within a rolling 30-day window. These light-touch checks use public record indicators such as bankruptcy filings and county court judgments to flag financially vulnerable players without requiring them to submit documents or affecting their credit score. The next phase would introduce a second tier of checks for higher-spending customers that may require documentary evidence of income, featuring enhanced financial risk assessments that are currently being piloted with credit reference agencies.
Pilot data published by the Gambling Commission indicates that approximately 95 percent of first-stage checks and 97 percent of second-stage checks resolve without interrupting the player experience. The BGC disputes this framing, arguing that early trials have revealed inconsistent data, unclear outcomes, and unnecessary friction for customers.
Grainne Hurst, the BGC’s chief executive, warned that forcing punters to hand over bank statements would drive customers to the illegal market, where there are no safeguards at all.
The polling arrived alongside an open letter to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy from the British Horseracing Authority, signed by 408 figures across the sport, including trainers, racecourse executives, breeders, owners, and members of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Racing and Bloodstock. The signatories urged the government to pause the rollout, warning that the checks would cause lasting damage to British horseracing by reducing the money flowing into the sport from betting.
The letter referenced a 2024 petition that gathered over 100,000 signatures against the checks, triggering a Westminster Hall debate at which then-Minister Stuart Andrew said the measures would only be introduced if they were “truly frictionless.”
The affordability check dispute is one piece of a broader regulatory squeeze on UK gambling operators in 2026. Remote Gaming Duty – a tax levied on UK-licensed online gambling revenue, first introduced in 2007 at 15%, raised to 21% in 2019 – rose to 40% on April 1, a measure projected to raise £810 million in 2026/27 according to House of Commons Library estimates. Online slots stake limits are already in effect at £5 per spin for players aged 25 and over and £2 for those under 25. A ban on mixed-product promotional bonuses in the UK took effect in January.
The BGC, which represents over 90% of the regulated UK betting industry, has consistently argued that the cumulative weight of new regulation and taxation risks accelerating consumer migration to illegal operators. The trade body estimated in March that £60 million was wagered with such entities during the Cheltenham Festival, the UK’s premier annual horse racing meeting.
According to BGC figures, the regulated sector supports 109,000 jobs, contributes £6.8 billion to the UK economy, and raises £4 billion in annual tax revenue. The British horseracing industry says it provides more than 85,000 jobs and contributes over £4 billion to the economy by itself.
Neither the Department for Culture, Media and Sport nor the Gambling Commission has publicly responded to the Yougov poll or the BHA open letter.
