A period of rain and flooding limited the decline in revenue bingo halls expected from the smoking ban. Even when the ban started this month, bad weather kept patrons in bingo halls, where revenues have dropped only 6-7%.
Numbers come from Neil Goulden, chief executive of Gala Coral, Europe’s biggest gambling firm and England’s bigger bingo operator. But it’s too early to be certain, Goulden said. Revenues are being compared to a bad period: the World Cup and hot weather reduced attendance during July 2006.
Figures are also good compared to Scotland, where revenue dropped 15% when the ban was introduced last year. Older women –usually found in bingo halls- stop attending when they have to go outside to smoke. Also, those who still attend leave the halls to smoke during breaks, not playing at the highly profitable machines.
Good news is Prime Minister Gordon Brown will meet with a member of the parliament to consider tax reductions for bingo halls. It has been argued that bingo is taxed twice: both on participation fees charged to players and gross profits paid by bingo halls.
A period of rain and flooding limited the decline in revenue bingo halls expected from the smoking ban. Even when the ban started this month, bad weather kept patrons in bingo halls, where revenues have dropped only 6-7%.