The betting and gaming giant Ladbrokes has said it is "committed" to its retail business in Northern Ireland - Northwest Bookmakers - after the subsidiary sustained heavy pre-tax losses of more than £35.6 million (€45.6m) in 2014 primarily because of a write down on retail values.
Ladbrokes operates 79 betting shops in the North under the Northwest Bookmakers brand and is the largest bookmaker in Northern Ireland, owning 25 per cent of shop licenses.
NorthWest Bookmakers reported a turnover of £23.1 million for the 12 month period to the end of December 2014- down on its turnover in the previous year of £24.5 million. In 2013 it also posted pre-tax profits of more than £11.6 million.
The latest accounts also show an impairment charge of more than £43.8 million.
Ladbrokes said the “statutory loss” in the accounts did not reflect the true performance of its Northern Ireland business but was an accounting procedure which was directly related to the decline in property values since it acquired the business in 2006 and subsequent other book makers in the North including the Eastwoods chain and McCartan Bookmakers.
According to Ladbrokes the Northern Ireland business is “performing well” despite a challenging environment and its retail shops continue to be “very popular”. The 2014 end of year accounts state that the average stake per slip in 2014 was £8.40 – down from £8.51 the previous year.
Ladbrokes says revenue in its shops comes from traditional over the counter betting on football, horse racing, greyhound racing and other sports. It also operates telephone betting and online and mobile services.
Northwest Bookmakers employed 386 people in the North in 2014.
According to the directors of Northwest Bookmakers the most “critical risk” to the business is any potential change to licensing laws in the North. They outline in the accounts that the current laws limit the number of betting shops in operation in Northern Ireland.
“If the laws were to change and mirror those existing in the Republic of Ireland this would devalue our business enormously,” they stated.
