§ Lord Hardy of Wathasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they intend to publish the fourth report on the impact of the National Lottery on the horserace betting levy. [HL3974]
§ Lord Williams of MostynAn update on the impact of the National Lottery on the horserace betting levy has been published today and copies have been placed in the Library. This fulfils an undertaking made during the passage of the National Lottery Bill.
The paper, which has been prepared by the Economics and Resource Analysis 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 1998, approximately £1.1 billion was diverted from off-course betting expenditure as a direct result of the National Lottery. This equates to off-course betting expenditure being about 13.2 per cent. below the level it would have reached in the absence of the lottery. Horserace betting accounts for about 69 per cent. of off-course betting expenditure, and therefore the levy yield is likely to have been similarly affected. This can only be an approximate figure, and the effect of the lottery may vary over time.