British bookmakers are due to meet Treasury Minister Stephen Timms MP tomorrow to press their case for a reduction in the betting tax.
They will lobby for a cut to 3 per cent from 6.75 per cent, and Warwick Bartlett, chairman of the bookmakers' committee of the Horserace Betting Levy Board, said: "This is a major opportunity for the UK government.
"We have commissioned independent research which demonstrates that as much as #10 billion of additional betting turn-over could be generated by attracting overseas gamblers.
"The UK has a well-established and lightly regulated industry which offers odds on a huge range of domestic and overseas sporting events."
Bookmakers are also concerned on a second front, and Bartlett went on: "We will also be urging the minister to take this opportunity to protect UK-based betting from the rapid growth of off-shore telephone and internet betting. At 6.75 per cent, the UK industry is simply not competitive when other jurisdictions offer far lower rates of duty.
"The Prime Minister has said that he wants to see this country as a world leader in e-commerce. We can deliver that as far as betting goes, given a competitive tax regime."
