Rank Boss Warns Tax Hike Could Force UK Casino and Bingo Closures

^{Rank Group operates Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos, and its chief executive says a further increase to Machine Games Duty would put venues in both estates at risk. (Photo: Mecca Bingo, Great Western Retail Park / Wikimedia Commons)}

Rank Group's chief executive has warned that bingo halls and casinos across the UK could be forced to close if the chancellor, John Healey, raises Machine Games Duty in his first Autumn Budget on 28 October 2026.

Richard Harris runs Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos for parent company Rank Group. He said land-based venues would become 'collateral damage' of a fresh tax rise, in comments reported by The Times this weekend. He urged the chancellor to avoid what he called 'reckless' increases to the duty, which is charged on takings from slot machines, electronic roulette terminals and fruit machines in casinos, bingo halls, arcades and social clubs.

Why the Warning Matters Now

Speculation about the October Budget has centred on a possible doubling of Machine Games Duty, which currently sits at 20% on the standard band. Treasury officials are reportedly modelling scenarios that would take the lower rate from 5% to 10%, the standard rate from 20% to 40%, and the higher rate from 25% to 50%.

No formal proposal has been published, and the figures reflect internal Treasury deliberation rather than confirmed policy. Even so, the prospect has alarmed an industry already absorbing last year's near-doubling of Remote Gaming Duty, from 21% to 40%, which took effect in April 2026.

Rank flagged the same concern in its own annual results statement, published on 13 August 2026. 'Within this context, the rate of Machine Games Duty in the UK is critical,' the company said in the release accompanying its results for the year to June 2026. 'Currently set at 20%, any increase to the rate will further impact venue viability across both Grosvenor and Mecca and will lead to a reduction in tax receipts within 12 months.'

A Sector Already Under Pressure

Rank said its digital business had grown over the past year even as it absorbed higher taxation, and that its casino estate remained a focus for machine and electronic gaming investment. The company added 850 machines across 38 of its casinos in the first half of the year.

'Tax increases for clubs like ours, with high levels of supervision and operating on tight margins, will swiftly lead to lower tax receipts as much-loved bingo halls and casinos will be forced to close, impacting customers in local communities.'

That warning, taken from Rank's own results statement, sits alongside similar pressure from elsewhere in the retail betting and gaming sector. Rivals have already pointed to last year's tax changes when scaling back UK operations; Flutter has said it plans to close up to 100 Paddy Power shops across the UK and Ireland, and other operators have cited the same cost pressures.

What Happens Next

Healey delivers his first Autumn Budget as chancellor on 28 October, when any decision on Machine Games Duty will be confirmed one way or the other. The Betting and Gaming Council has already rejected the reported doubling scenario, warning it would cost jobs, weaken high streets and drive customers toward the unregulated market.

Until then, Rank and other land-based operators are lobbying against the change while continuing to invest in venues they say are now performing better after a 'rightsizing' of the UK estate. Whether that argument lands with the Treasury will not be clear until Budget day.