Ladbrokes Confirms That They are Leaving
August 10, 2009
There has been a lot of speculation as to whether or not William Hill was going to leave the United Kingdom for their online gambling home base. The online gambling company has been very clear that they are not happy with the amount of tax that the UK has been charging them – 10% - as compared to that which Gibraltar is offering – as low as 1.5%. They had said that they were considering the move, and then they finally came out and said that they were indeed going to move their online gambling operations.
At the time many had speculated that if they left that online gambling companies like Ladbrokes would probably join them – as well as many others. Well, this morning Ladbrokes announced that they would be leaving the UK as well. They are also moving their online gambling company to greener pastures and lower taxes.
Many thought that when William Hill made their move that the UK would drop their tax rate for their online gambling companies. However, nothing of the sort has happened and in the process they have lost millions of pounds in revenue that they would have gotten if they had. The UK Treasury will not be able to make up that difference.
Ladbrokes said that the “UK has become unsustainable” in terms of keeping their online gambling business there, and that they would be moving by the end of the year. Experts have already said that for William Hill the move will save them upwards of £7 million a year. It can be expected that Ladbrokes will gain a somewhat comparable addition to their coffers.
