Has Brown unleashed gambling menace?

IT'S the new gambling craze that's sweeping the country. Punters as young as 16 have fallen for the attractions of a machine that can pay out up to £50,000 and accept bets as low as 25p.

And betting shops are packed with gamblers desperate to take another one-in-35 chance of a bumper payout on the electronic roulette wheel.

With regular payouts, it is hardly surprising that punters have become hooked on what has been described by some critics as the 'crack cocaine of gambling'.

But the future of Fixed Odds Betting Terminals is at risk as the Government and the betting industry regulator get ready to battle the bookies.

It will be a tough fight with the industry unwilling to drop a sideline that has provided a welcome boost to their profits. But it will be hard to get odds on the outcome.

Bookmakers have installed thousands of fixed odds terminals since Gordon Brown abolished duty on individual bets in favour of a tax on bookmakers' gross profits in October 2001. The Chancellor failed to realise that this would create a betting bonanza that would previously have been too expensive for the bookies to offer. Their 4p profit on each £1 coin fed into the terminals would have been almost wiped out under the old tax regime.

But when the bookies discovered they had another winner in addition to horses and greyhounds, they were quick to respond. Ladbrokes has installed an average of two machines in each of its 1,865 shops, while William Hill and Stanley Leisure have one in every High Street outlet.

But the demand caught the bookies by surprise. And with queues for the machines clogging up their shops, the bookies plan to install thousands more.

Their enthusiasm is hardly surprising. The terminals have already brought them in millions of pounds. William Hill has even announced that it will show record annual profits this year - thanks to the gambling frenzy sparked by the new machines.

But the Government is not happy. It wants the machines removed and is drawing up new legislation. It is backed by the Gaming Board and gambling addiction charities, which report an alarming number of calls from punters hooked on the fixed-odds machines.

The Gaming Board, which regulates casinos, bingo halls and gaming machines but not bookmakers, claims the bookies have exploited a loophole in legislation to launch the terminals.

Chairman Peter Dean says that the issue rests on the difference between betting and gaming. With the terminals, punters know in

advance how much they can win, but they cannot influence the outcome of the game. However, ' gaming' means that the punter or the machine, such as a one-armed bandit, has some element of control on the outcome. Confusion has arisen because the law regulates only gaming. And because fixed-odds punters cannot change the outcome, the machines in bookies' shops appear to be outside the law.

A test case is due in the High Court next spring to determine the whole issue.

Lord McIntosh, the Minister in charge of gambling at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, said: 'Far from allowing their installation, we have supported legal proceedings brought by the Gaming Board to establish that these machines involve unlawful gaming under the current law and secure their removal.'

A spokesman for the department warned that the experience of other countries that had liberalised gambling indicated there could be a huge increase in gambling-linked problems.

He added: 'You have to become a member to join a casino, but on the High Street you could have 16-yearolds coming in. The prospect of winning £50,000 does encourage people to gamble.'

Paul Bellringer, chief executive of Gamcare, a charity that promotes responsible attitudes towards gambling, said it had already begun to register calls from players concerned about their attraction to fixed-odds terminals.

But the bookies will not give up without a fight. A spokesman for one leading chain said: 'We really do not understand why there has been such a reaction to these machines. The Government said it wanted to encourage investment and innovation. The problem for them is that we have gone ahead and done it.

'They are not just gaming machines, they are classic fixed odds games and you should be able to bet what you like and win what you like.'

Bookmakers are coy about publishing the success of fixed odds betting terminals while talks continue about their regulation.

They plan to lobby the Government as it formulates the new legislation and press their case to keep the machines. But for now, they are keeping a low profile - and counting their winnings.

'MY LUCKY STREAK ENDS BUT BY THEN I'M BORED'
A STROKE of luck! It's usually a struggle to get on one of the fixed-odds betting terminals.

The line of four shiny machines by the entrance to the Ladbrokes branch in west London makes the rest of the shop with its well-thumbed copies of the Racing Post look dowdy and old-fashioned.

But a machine comes free and I quickly bag my seat. I feed in a £10 note. I notice that my fellow players are pumping in tens and twenties as if they were handling Monopoly money.

Even more scary is the credit card slot - soon all I'll need is plastic. There is a range of games to play on the machines - numbers, sports and racing. You can bet on how far a golfer will drive a ball - fun, but rather gimmicky. I feel as if I'm playing, not gambling.

And I haven't won anything so far.

The bingo-like Keno proves to be rather addictive. You can choose ten numbers out of 99. My screen tells me that I can win £49,600 with a 62p bet. Great stuff.

Unfortunately, I rattle through half of my money before I realise that I still haven't won a thing.

It's time to follow the crowd and play roulette. This is simple. It's easy to bet and there is even a spinning roulette wheel to increase the excitement.

The machines are connected to a computer in central London that generates a number at random. The machine's software then depicts the outcome in a game format - but it's still fun.

I'm even up £5 at one point. After a while my lucky streak comes to an end, but by then I'm rather bored. The game lacks the excitement of 'real-life' gambling at the races or in a casino. I cash in my remaining fiver and leave. There is a queue of people eager to take my place.