LOVEJILI 21.LOVEJILI link,Lovejili philippines

Conservatives Celebrate Their Biggest Majority Since Thatcher

  • Boris Johnson's party now has a working majority of almost 80
  • Heavy losses for both Labour and the Lib Dem's in the election
  • The Scottish National Party may also implement their own measures after their big win
male inserting vote in ballot box
A review of the 2005 Gambling Act looks inevitable after the Conservatives secured the party’s biggest majority since Margaret Thatcher was leader. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Labour and Liberal Democrats overall losers

After a tense night in UK politics, Boris Johnson’s Conservatives have earned their biggest majority since Margaret Thatcher was reelected in the 1980s.

The party, which was previously in a coalition with Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), now has an outright majority of almost 80 MPs after a disastrous night for the Labour Party and their leader Jeremy Corbyn. Labour lost a total of 59 seats and Corbyn has confirmed that he will step down in the near future.

their biggest majority since Margaret Thatcher was reelected in the 1980s

However, it was the Liberal Democrats that had the unluckiest night. Their leader, Jo Swinson, was ousted in Dunbartonshire East. She lost to Scottish National Party (SNP) candidate Amy Callaghan by just 149 votes. Still, the vote share for both the Liberal Democrats and the SNP was up overall.

Gambling a big campaign topic

All parties campaigned heavily on gambling issues in the run up to the election, with both main parties pledging to review the 2005 Gambling Act.

Labour had said that the current legislation is not fit for purpose, especially in the digital age. While the Liberal Democrats hadn’t gone as far, they did look to introduce a compulsory levy on gambling companies to fund research and provide education and treatment services. They were also keen on a credit card ban.

It’s currently unknown as to whether the new Conservative majority government will adopt this principle.

In their manifesto, the Conservatives said that they planned on publishing a new UK-wide cross-government addiction strategy in 2020, including gambling. It is also expected that they will launch a dedicated monitoring unit, claiming that it will be at the heart of government.

It is something that the industry has been following closely. Even at this year’s GambleAware annual conference, CEO Marc Etches outlined how gambling had been ‘crystalized’ in the election campaign.

Brexit was the deciding vote

One thing for certain, though; Brexit, the act of the UK leaving the EU, is now Johnson’s top priority. He campaigned on the slogan ‘Get Brexit Done’ after winning voters over with his ‘oven-ready agreement’ with the EU. This is now ready to push through Parliament over the Christmas period.

It means the UK will officially leave the EU on January 31st 2020 before embarking on a quick turnaround to ensure trade details are in place by the end of the year.

Scottish sway a concern

The one immediate concern from the gambling sectors point of view is the sway of support for the SNP who have also been vocal about such issues.

Nicola Sturgeon may have the issue of Scottish nationalism on her hands, but a new devolved gambling strategy may be on the cards. Within its ‘Stronger for Scotland’ manifesto, the SNP pledged to concentrate on minors and their access to in-game items, such as loot boxes. This could include age verification measures or limits on certain sites.

expect more news on changes to agencies and legislation come the New Year

They have also recommended a new independent regulator, though this may work with the Conservative Party’s thoughts of a new monitoring unit.

Now that the numbers are in, the New Year is certain to bring lots of new political changes. With gambling taking such a turn under the spotlight in this election, expect more news on changes to agencies and legislation come the New Year.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *