William hill

Excellent news. Hopefully many, many more will be following shortly.

Well they were already closing shops and stop the fobts are skeptical about this announcement. They will be going online and it will be something do with online restructuring, duty on the machines and hasty rollout of some shops.

Make no mistake I am not sad about any job losses in the gambling dens. These staff enable the dens to take money from us so its ridiculous addicted notion that I would feel sorry for them.

The banter I used to hear in those places made me cringe. Its odd really because I was a full on addict but I never really engaged with the staff beyond an awkward exchange of slips with me being over polite to combat my awkward feelings.

I was so messed up that I would thank them politely for a £15 slip when I had just sunk a hundred or so. That would be on the rare occasion where I wasnt walking out with nothing.

My view is that the £2 slot limit will make little if any difference. I hope it does but I used to blow hundreds a session on lower stakes than that.

I dont see the levels of regulation I want, so see this sort of news as superficial

Best wishes to everyone on the forum

I have on more than 1 occasion blown 50 pounds doing 20p spins. The reduced stake will make very little difference to the likes of me. For slot players its more about passing time than anything else. It just takes a little longer on a lower stake...but not that much longer

Joydivider why I share your experiences and believe me 40 odd yrs of gambling I've been down many roads, many arcades, many bookies, many casinos, but I would never wish anyone out of a job, you wouldn't want a single parent unemployed just because they chose a job that suits there circumstances I'm with you all the way but wishing for some1s unemployment in my opion is d**n right selfish. I know Jobs will be lost but I wouldn't want them 2

Xredx

Difficult issue when you start looking at it from the perspective of the individuals who will be losing their jobs. You can pretty well guarantee it will not be the multi-millionaire owners who feel any financial hurt as a result of this.

Regardless of that I still struggle to have much sympathy for the loss of these jobs. The number of bookies/casinos littering the average high street is quite frankly ridiculous and unfortunately if circumstances have forced you into working in this immoral industry then maybe, just maybe, you need to accept that these jobs need to go for the greater good of society.

When I was considering moving jobs a few years back the recruitment company I was working with let me know of a job working for one of the big UK tobacco companies. This was a company that was actively moving its marketing/advertising activity away from the UK (due to the harsher regulations and declining smoking amongst the young) and towards 3^rd world countries because they were seen as a potential expanding markets. Everything they were doing was of course 100% legal just like the gambling industry. They were struggling to get people with my skills to work for them due to the business they were in so were offering around 20% higher salaries than the average and some great benefits to try and get people in. Needless to say, I said I was not interested despite the reasonably significant pay rise it would have meant.

Sometimes you have to be able to look your children in the eye and tell them what you do to earn a living.

Just my view and I wait to be blasted by people who say some people have limited job opportunities and can’t afford to be as selective about which jobs they take. Still can’t feel disappointed if the number of gambling establishments reduces.

Muststop123

As happy as I am that there is the possibility of these shops closing in their droves, come April, I can’t help but think that they’ll find other ways to make their money.

Surely there’ll be an influx of people who’ll head over to place their high stakes roulette online? Correct me if I’m wrong but can’t you currently place MORE than the £100 a spin that you can bet on a FOBT?

I sincerley hope I’m wrong about all of this, but I am more than a little wary about celebrating too hard about all of this at the moment.

Until they apply the same sort of law towards online gambling, I can’t help but think that it’s just moving one problem area and placing it into another. Like I say, I hope I’m wrong, I really do! These are worrying times for the bookies but also for the problem gamblers of this country too.

All these people who are putting all their eggs into the 1st April basket just need to be on their toes and be aware of ways they could be dragged back in to the gambling trap. These companies won’t go away easily and certainly won’t go down without a fight.

Redbar wrote: Joydivider why I share your experiences and believe me 40 odd yrs of gambling I've been down many roads, many arcades, many bookies, many casinos, but I would never wish anyone out of a job, you wouldn't want a single parent unemployed just because they chose a job that suits there circumstances I'm with you all the way but wishing for some1s unemployment in my opion is d**n right selfish. I know Jobs will be lost but I wouldn't want them 2 Xredx

Im not a monster redbar and I disagree that its a selfish attitude. I understand what you are getting at but find it a bit harsh.

I do have some sympathy for the reasons why thats the only job they could get. Its a tough job market. I dont have sympathy for them in that role. To do the job takes a brass neck and shutting themselves off from the problems they help create. I consider that unforgivable.

If I was selling you a dream( ie a product that just doesnt work as advertised) with no refunds..people naturally wouldnt want me to still be doing that job

They know what they are taking on and they know why the job is easier to get than some others. Its not an easy job and I couldnt face the problems Ive seen in a bookies. They know there are addicts and they must see people losing all their money on a daily basis.

Gambling dens drain money from the community. What they sell are empty bottles of hope or a tax on the dreamers. Its an irresponsible and very dangerous thing to do with money. Its not really a bit of fun or a winners game.

So I dont get why people like them so much. They aint your friends and they are not even on your side. It may seem so in a lonely addicts mind but they are actually bleeding the community dry.

Im sorry we seem to disagree but I stand firm on this

Best wishes to you

They may not go away without a fight and there's absolutely no doubt they'll be even more aggressive in their online marketing strategies but the physical shops have been a blight on the high street for many years stemming from the Bliar government's ludicrous decision to deregulate. I'm not buying into the industry's hand wringing about job losses when the policy across all operators has consistently been to woefully understaff to maximise profit.

Online gaming is starting to be kind of regulated with the advent of Gamstop but really there's very little appetite in government of any flavour to do much more than showboat when they have come to rely on the revenue. I've no doubt the maths has been done and the impact on tax take will be minimal.