Bullet Business

Ladbrokes has reportedly decided to end sponsorship of Great Voltigeur and Bunbury Cup.
 
According to a report filed by The Guardian, the company terminated its sponsorship of the Great Voltigeur Stakes at York’s August Ebor meeting.
 
Ladbrokes’ public relations director, Mike Dillon, said that these are difficult times and decisions such as this have to be made.
 
The decision comes as the result of a financial review.
 
Last month, Ladbrokes announced proposals to close its Aintree call centre, affecting a workforce of 263 people. The company, which will be offering redeployment and relocation opportunities to minimise redundancies, entered into a period of consultation with employee representatives, including USDAW. Ladbrokes also has call centre operations at its Head Office in Harrow.
 
UK based telephone betting operators like Ladbrokes are being severely impacted by competition from offshore operators. Ladbrokes’ telephone betting service pays 15% tax on its gross profits and a further 10% on profits from UK horseracing, as well as VAT and corporation tax. The company pointed out that offshore operators typically pay no or very low taxes and no horseracing levy.
 
Ladbrokes core telephone business was loss-making at the half-year stage this year, recording a 41% decline in revenues. Ladbrokes call centres handle over 6 million calls a year and operate a 24-hour a day, seven day a week service. Ladbrokes’ telephone betting service levels will be unaffected by the closure of the Aintree call centre.