§ Shona McIsaacTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to publish the second report on the impact of the national lottery on the horserace betting levy. [12151]
§ Mr. George HowarthAn update on the impact of the national lottery on the horserace betting levy has been published today. This fulfils an undertaking made during the passage of the National Lottery Bill.
The paper, which has been prepared by the economics unit of the Home Office, examines continuing trends in off-course betting expenditure, on which the levy is closely dependent.
The statistical analysis suggests that, in 1996, betting expenditure off-course was about 10 per cent. below the level it would have reached in the absence of the national lottery. Horserace betting accounts for an estimated 70 per cent. of such expenditure, and therefore the levy yield is likely to have been similarly affected. This can be only an approximate figure, and the effect of the lottery may vary over time.