Gordon Brown calls for gambling tax to cut child poverty

The government is already consulting on plans to merge various betting taxes from October 2027, in a bid to make the taxation of free bets, freeplays and prizes more consistent in the era of online gambling. Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Brown insisted he did not want to be a "back seat driver," adding that Reeves would be more aware than he is of the "pressure she is under" on the public finances. It says this would cover the cost of scrapping the two-child benefit cap, which restricts child tax credit and universal credit (UC) to the first two children in most households, and the overall benefit cap in place since 2013.