§ 58. Mr. Masonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will hold a Departmental inquiry into the development and social desirability of fixed-odds betting to ascertain whether bribery in sport is made easier by this method and whether it has been encouraged by this new betting trend.
§ Mr. BrookeThe background and social desirability of different forms of betting on various sports were reviewed by the Royal Commission on Betting, Lotteries and Gaming, 1949–1951, and were subsequently fully discussed by Parliament during the passage of the Betting and Gaming Act, 1960. Fixed-odds betting on sporting fixtures is not a new trend, and I know of no sufficient reason to justify a further inquiry at this time.