FOBT stake cut to £2 - at long last!

Hi guys

The govt are reviewing FOBT's, Philip Hammond wants the stake to be £20 because it will not effect taxation and bookies win because the majority of players already play £20 max per spin, meaning no shop closures and profits up. However, the stop the FOBT's want it reduced to £2 a spin.

Interesting how it is going to pan out, decision due in the summer.

Stay safe and remember, no gambling today.

Shaun

Hi all

Don't it feel good knowing here we are at the start of another weekend and we will be gamble free. No more losing hundreds on those dreaded machines chasing that green zero, oh no, £13 on zero, the ball lands on 26 and then 32, on both I have only 40p splits!

No more running to and fro endless cash machines only to find out someone is on my machine!

Roll forward to Saturday evening, sitting in the living room with family, smiling, pretending to be happy but inside feeling someone is slashing me.

Do I miss those days, do me a favour.

Stay happy guys and remember, we are not gambling today.

Shaun

Good post mate and you seem to be in a very good place right now keep it going buddy we're doing it
Wilsy

TIMES UP FOR THE BOOKIES!

I was in Birmingham city centre yesterday, family shopping so I spent the best part of 5 hours walking around, my research has told me their are approximately 55 bookies in the vicinity of the Bull Ring. As I was walking around I couldn't help notice that there were so many empty shops with the staff amusing themselves by being on their phones or drinking coffee. In nearly all those shops the dreaded FOBT's were just standing there with nobody playing them, it was a refreshing sight.

In days gone the bookies were full with people queuing up to play on them, looks like the threat of stake reduction is having its effect already. I know someone who is a area manager of a big chain of bookies and he has told me that if the stake is cut dramatically then there will be hundreds of shops closing.

The bookies have had a good run but like all things, everything must come to an end.

By the way, I stayed gamble free and treated myself to a full body Thai Massage - sensational.

Shaun

Nice post mate the machines and their greed have ruined the shops very few people bet on the horses and dogs nowadays which is what I was brought up on and because they are so bent people are starting to give up and they aren't interested in sports as well as online services shops are finished.
Pleased you feel satisfaction I enjoyed reading your post
Well done on remaining so strong you're worth more than them

Hi guys

Nothing new to report other then I am gamble free, have a double header this week, going to two different towns shopping with family. Don't feel bothered about gambling anymore but that could not be a good thing, if you catch my drift. Everytime I come away from these excursions safely I put a little money away as to reward myself for not gambling, a nice couple of hundred pounds I have accumulated.

No gambling for us today.

Hi all

Two successful trips this weekend, both gamble free, must admit today was a wee bit tough. Yesterday I spent the day buying things I needed so was really busy and the time flew by. Today was different, didn't need to buy anything, so basically walked around for 4 hours just drinking tea. As I walked around couldn't help noticing the bookies were so empty, great!

Feet are hurting, drank so much tea, endless trips to the toilets, boredom but glad to report I didn't gamble.

Take care.

Shaun

Hi all

All fine and dandy, I always seem to have money in my wallet these days..............

Shaun

Hi guys

Has the title suggests, breaking news is that the stake is reduced only to £30 a spin, the recommendations were £50 to £2. The lower limit of £2 would have brought FOBT's to the national level. The bookies argued that reducing the stake to £2 would have meant closing hundreds of shops. Also, the bookies knew that the majority of punters staked a maximum of £20 a spin, so in essence the bookies profits will stay the same or higher and the govt will get the same or higher revenue. All meaning the little man/women loses, again.

However, the penny has dropped for me, if reducing the stake meant closing hundreds of shops then how much revenue are they getting off the likes of me. If anything it has made my resolve to quit gambling even stronger.

Stay safe and gamble free.

Shaun

Hi all

Going shopping again this Saturday to Manchester City centre, looking forward to having a leisurely stroll around town and taking in a coffee or two. What I won't be doing or missing is the endless hours glued to the FOBT's and hoping I get some of the money back I have squandered that morning.

On one occasion, whilst the family were shopping I spent an entire five hours in just one bookie, at the same time giving them £500 for the pleasure of letting me enter their shop. Just imagine, the family saw the entire of Manchester City centre and all I did for five hours was to spend my time in a room roughly 12ft by 20ft - HOW SAD.

The irony of the above story is when I first entered the boookmakers, I put in the fobt a £20 note, putting £10 on green zero and spreading the rest around, guess what? yep, green zero came in giving me £360 with my very first bet of the day. Lessons have been learned, from now on DON'T GAMBLE!

Shaun

Hi guys

Fully armed for my 5hr shopping stint tomorrow, I have made a list of things to buy and places to go. To be fair I will struggle to do all my tasks in 5hr but that is a blessing in disguise, not getting board meaning no going into any one of 55 bookies in Manchester City centre for a 'free cup of tea'.

Shaun

Good luck Shaun, you seem to be doing very well so far. KEEP IT UP!

All good, plenty of sight seeing and shopping but no gambling, sorry bookies, you ain't having my money!

Hi Shaun

Not been on here for a while so just catching up your last posts. Gutted about the stake reduction, I didn't hear it on the news so this is the first I've seen of it. Makes you sick, the government is getting that much money from the taxes they will want to keep it high. You think the government is meant to represent the people but they makes decision based on their own agendas - like you say, at the expense of us! Let this just be fuel for the fire to provide more motivation to keep gamble free.

I bet it felt good to go in to Manchester and have a normal day out. I really relish these now, I treat myself to a coffee, watch the world go by and appreicate not destroying my life. Hope you treated yourself to something nice.

I'm in Manchester a lot so I know how frequent the bookies are on the highstreet. I guess its the same in every town or city now. I see most of them in the highly deprived areas, it is disgusting to thing they almost target the most vunerable.

Well done anyway mate, keep up the good work, life is much better without gambling!

James

Trusted info from a bookmaker insider: for the fobts, the reduction in stake will be done not as all of we belive but it will be just like now. Instead of maximum bet of 50£ you can do without asking the bookie operative to deblock the terminal for 100£ limit, the fobt will be lowered to 30£ but still you can bet 100£ if you ask for max limit to play. So technical, the only change will be that from 50£ will go to 30£ but the 100£ will still be available.