Government makes U-turn over delay to £2 FOBT maximum stake

Reduction to take effect in April 2019 after MP rebellion and minister’s resignationA cut in the maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) will be brought forward to April 2019 after the government backed down in the face of a growing rebellion that made allies of MPs across the political spectrum.The chancellor, Philip Hammond, said in the budget that a reduction in FOBT stakes from £100 to £2 would not take effect until October next year, a decision that handed bo