Hackney calls for support against the blight of bookies

Hackney Council has launched a new phase in its campaign against the wave of betting shops blighting Hackney's high streets. You can read the full story at: http://news.hackney.gov.uk/hackney-calls-for-support-against-blight-of-bookies/

The Council is also calling on residents nationwide to sign an online petition to Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles to demonstrate the weight of public opinion against the current betting shop free-for-all.

The Council’s proposal is that betting shops be given their own use class, as with nightclubs and casinos. This would mean residents and councillors could have a say over every application, and the potential impact that a new betting shop may have on an area would become a key factor on whether or not it gets approved.

To view the petition, visit www.change.org/petitions/eric-pickles-mp-help-councils-stop-betting-shops-taking-over-our-high-streets

More information: 

A Deloitte Customer Review survey published in January found that 52 per cent of people wanted fewer betting shops in their high streets, compared with just 6 per cent wanting more.

Guardian research from the same month demonstrated a direct link between areas of deprivation and spend on gambling.

A London Assembly report last year found a 13 per cent increase in betting shops across London between January 2010 and December 2012, concluding that government should amend planning legislation to give local communities more control.

An independent review by Mary Portas into high streets, commissioned by this government in 2011, also concluded betting shops should be given their own use class, stating they are "blighting our high streets", while a Local Government Association report found clusters of betting shops harmed local economies. Government has in the past suggested that a technical planning tool called an Article 4 Direction gives councils sufficient powers over betting shop applications. However, this has proven not to be the case by councils trying to use it.

To read the full submission, visit http://www.hackney.gov.uk/beatthebookies
The read the Deloitte Customer Review, visit http://is.gd/EBqBVc
For the Guardian research, visit http://is.gd/rYags3
For the London Assembly report, visit http://is.gd/Zl147z
For the Mary Portas review, visit http://is.gd/H9mBL6
For the Local Government Association report, visit http://is.gd/A7BIW0