5
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overtime in certain areas of the Service may help to provide a solution not only for this problem, but also for the problem presented by the apparent reduction in take-home pay.
COST
16. In my view the long-term effect of the proposals in the Report would be to increase productivity and improve recruitment. Their immediate net cost would be about £5 million a year. This excludes whatever may have to be spent on recruiting extra staff or alternatively in continuing overtime, and also excludes the effect on the pension bill. But whether the precise figure is £5 million or £10 million—or even some figure slightly in excess of the latter amount—I would regard this as a reasonable sum to lay out on making both more efficient and more attractive a Service whose total salary and wages bill is now running at about £400 million a year.
December, 1955.
R. A. B.
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(THIS DOCENDISBAL PROPERTY OF HER BRITANNIC MAJERY CONMENT)
SECRET
C.P. (55) 204
16th December, 1955
CABINET
64
COPY NO.
REPORT OF THE ROYAL COMMISSION ON BETTING, LOTTERIES AND GAMING
Memorandum by the Secretary of State for the Home Department and Minister for Welsh Affairs
Past history
The Royal Commission on Betting, Lotteries and Gaming reported in March, 1951 (Cmd. 8190). The main recommendations
were:-
(a)
(3)
(c)
that off-the-course cash betting should be made
lawful and that licensed betting offices should be established;
that the law about gaming should be repealed and fresh provisions enacted which would generally make gaming lawful, provided that no private profit ensued; and
that the opportunities for betting on dog-tracks
should be further restricted and the amounts which might be retained by the operator of a totalisator at a dog-track should, in certain circumstances, be reduced.
A further recommendation that the conduct of football pools should be controlled has since been implemented by the Fool Betting Act, introduced as a Private Member's Bill.
2. The Labour Government did not make any pronouncement of their views before resigning in November, 1951, but it is understood that they were generally favourable to the recommendations.
3. The Home Affairs Committee appointed a Sub-Committee in March, 1953, to consider the recommendations (H.A.(53) 2nd Meeting, Item 3). The Sub-Committee reported its conclusion to the Cabinet later that year; this was that, subject to comparatively minor qualifications of detail, all the recommendations of the Commission should be accepted (C. (53) 317).
4. In February, 1954, the Cabinet invited the Home Secretary to discuss with Leaders of the Opposition Parties a proposal that a debate
should be arranged in the House of Lords on the Report, during the course page which statement might be made indicating the Government of willingness
-1-
328
Pagæzåîóf3the possibility of legislation on the lines rPage28end£32ły the
Commission, if it was the general feeling that the law ought not to be allowed to remain in its present unsatisfactory state (C.C.(54) 11th Conclusions, Minute 9). A discussion with Mr. Ede and other members of the Labour Party took place on 29th March, 1954. Mr. Ede undertook to have the matter considered by his Party, but no statement was subsequently received.
5. At this meeting the Opposition seemed more concerned that there should be an amendment of the law relating to small lotteries to meet difficulties which had mainly grown since the Royal Commission reported. Subsequently, two Lotteries Bills were introduced by private Members, and a third Bill - the small Lotteries and Gaming Bill - received a Second Reading, without a division, on 25th November.
Present position
6. There are strong grounds for a reform of the law
(a)
(b)
(c)
(a)
The present state of the law is widely admitted
to be confused, unsatisfactory and out of touch with modern opinion; in consequence, the law has been brought into disrepute.
The law is impossible to enforce generally and this leads to opportunities for corruption of the police. The attempt to enforce an unpopular law partially diverts inadequate police manpower from other duties. The Central Conference of Chief Constables has, for these reasons, recommended that the Report should be implemented.
At this year's Annual Conference of the Conservative Party a resolution was passed, by a large majority, asking the Government to take immediate action.
The Times has published a letter from Mr. Willink, the Chairman of the Commission, criticising the Government for taking no action on a unanimous Report and suggesting that this, unless corrected, may result in men in public life being unwilling to serve on future Commissions.
(e) Since the introduction of the Small Lotteries and
Gaming Bill in the House of Commons there have been several indications that pressure is to be put on the Government about this matter. Already
a number of Questions which relate to it directly or indirectly have been put down.
(f)
Lord Silkin has put down a motion for debate in the
House of Lords on 8th February.
7.
Although the matter is undoubtedly controversial, there is good ground for thinking that a Bill on the general lines of the recommend- ations in the Report would be generally supported. In particular, during
the Second Reading Debate on the Small Lotteries and Gaming Bill a number of speakers from both sides of the House criticised the Govern- ment's failure either to announce their acceptance of the Report or to Page vile ofn3@pportunity for debating it.