Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Charity Lottery Annual Sales Limit

Thursday 7 July 2022 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Society lotteries raise hundreds of millions of pounds annually for charities and other organisations.
  • Sales and prize limits for society lotteries were last increased in 2020.
  • The Government aims to review increasing the annual sales limit to 100 million to ensure it benefits good causes and does not negatively impact the national lottery.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Craig Whittaker Con
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

The question pertains to the potential merits of raising the annual sales limit for charity lotteries. The current system raises hundreds of millions of pounds annually, and a review after 12 months concluded that reforms were beginning to benefit the sector but more evidence was needed before making further changes.

Question

If the Government will consult on the potential merits of raising the charity lottery annual sales limit to £100 million. Society lotteries are a vital source of funds for charities and other organisations, raising hundreds of millions of pounds every year. Sales and prize limits were last increased in 2020.

Answer from Nigel Huddleston

Society lotteries are a vital source of funds for charities and other organisations, raising hundreds of millions of pounds every year. Sales and prize limits were last increased in 2020. A review after 12 months, published in March, concluded that the reforms were starting to benefit the sector, but more evidence was needed before making further changes. We will work with the Gambling Commission to keep this under review.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about consulting on increasing the annual sales limit to £100 million was not directly addressed.

How: Keep This Under Review

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Q2 Craig Whittaker Con
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

The previous question asked about the potential merits of raising the charity lottery annual sales limit to £100 million, and the Minister had indicated that more evidence was needed before making further changes. The follow-up asks if the Government will agree to look at this again and implement the review sooner rather than later.

Question

I thank the Minister for that answer. As he rightly said, charity lotteries, such as the people's postcode lottery, are benefiting thousands of charities and communities around the country, not least in the Calder Valley itself, and implementing the next stage of charity lottery reform, as the Government have previously said they will do, is a great way to help to take forward the levelling-up agenda at no cost to the public purse. Will he agree to look further at this and implement that review sooner rather than later?

Answer from Nigel Huddleston

Yes, absolutely; we will keep this under review. The Government did express an ambition to look again at increasing the annual sales limit to £100 million once we were satisfied that this would result in an increase in overall returns to good causes and would not negatively impact on the national lottery. That goal of making sure the returns to good causes are optimised will be at the front of our minds.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about implementing the next stage of charity lottery reform sooner was not directly addressed, and the response remained vague on timing.

How: Keep This Under Review

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