Paddy Power owner to axe 1,400 jobs after Labour gambling tax raid 

Paddy Power owner Flutter has announced it will cut as many as 1,400 jobs, blaming Labour’s tax raid on the gambling sector last year. The New-York listed firm will restructure its UK and Ireland division, slashing around 15 per cent of its workforce. Redundancies will affect roles in Leeds and Dublin, as well as Portugal and Romania where staff support the UK division. The betting group said the losses were in response to the “significant increase” in UK gambling taxes announced in last year’s Autumn Budget. Former chancellor Rachel Reeves nearly doubled the charge, hiking them from 21 per cent to 40 per cent. The changes took effect this April, and bookmakers are now bracing for a levy on their profits to rise from 15 per cent to 25 per cent from April 2027. Kevin Harrington, Flutter s UK I chief executive, said the gambling industry cannot fully absorb a rise of this magnitude without reducing our fixed cost base . Recent tax hikes on the sector have fundamental