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BGC celebrates betting shop reopening after months of closure
The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has welcomed the reopening of licenced betting shops in Wales and England with open arms after months of closure due to the COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions.
All licenced betting shops are allowed to reopen starting from April the 12th after UK PM Boris Johnson declared that the United Kingdom would be moving into the second phase of its lockdown exit strategy. Betting shops will be able to open with all other non-essential retail stores, which have all been closed since the fifth of January, when the third national lockdown was implemented.
In fact, all gambling venues across England have been shut down since January, even though many other facilities have been shut down for much longer because of the different regional restrictions.
Some of these restrictions will still be imposed for betting shops, such as having clients all wear masks inside the venue and stick to social distancing guidelines. Many other gambling venues will be reopening in stage three, including casinos, and are expected to open on the 17th of May.
Michael Dugher, chief executive of the Betting and Gaming Council, welcomed the reopening of betting shops as he stated that this will allow some 6,000 venues to reopen.
Dugher went on to say:
“It’s great news that high street betting shops in England and Wales are finally able to re-open safely, along with the rest of non-essential retail. It’s been a long three months for betting shop staff, as well as their customers, and I know they are all looking forward to safely getting back to business thanks to the best-in-class anti-Covid measures in place. The UK’s betting shops support 46,000 jobs and paid nearly £1bn in tax to the Treasury in 2020, while our members contribute £350m to horseracing through sponsorship, media rights and the betting levy. This means that as well as providing a much-needed boost for the millions of people who enjoy a flutter, they will also be able to play a key role in the UK’s post-Covid economic recovery.”
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