Flutter Entertainment CEO Peter Jackson has warned the UK government against potentially increasing gambling taxes by too much, claiming that such a move is in “no-one’s interest.”
He said setting the tax rate too high “reduces competition, weakens the consumer offering and can lead to a reduction in tax revenue.”
Jackson’s comments on LinkedIn came after reports in The Guardian claimed that the UK’s Treasury is considering proposals from two thinktanks over how to increase gambling’s contribution to the tax system.
Labour’s chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to reveal the government’s latest fiscal plans for the UK on October 30.
Flutter owns brands such as Paddy Power and Sky Bet in the UK.
In the US, its FanDuel brand is set to be continue its role as a key driver of Flutter's growth in the next few years – and Jackson, in an interview with the Financial Times, has issued similar tax concerns about the US market.
“If the [US] states are genuinely trying to maximise their tax revenues, they should be very thoughtful about pushing the tax rates up,” he said, claiming that 18 per cent is an optimum rate.
“If you push taxes too high, then people . . . will use illegal operators and tax revenues [will] go down.”
Jackson also failed to rule out a Flutter move for the main national lottery licence in Italy following the acquisition of Sisal and more recently Snaitech in the country.
“We like markets where you can innovate around the lottery and then use that as a cross-selling platform,” he said.
Read more: Betting and Gaming Council: Potential tax rises 'not credible'
