Proposed Acquisition Of Corals By Ladbrokes

EDM number 831 in 1997-98, proposed by Neil Gerrard on 25/02/1998.

That this House expresses its concern at the proposed acquisition by Ladbrokes of 833 Coral betting shops and two Coral greyhound racecourses; recognises the high proportion of BAGS meetings acquired by Ladbrokes tracks and the price paid for greyhound races by BAGS; and urges the Government to refer the bid for Coral to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission so that they can further investigate BAGS tender prices and to require that this takeover and concentration of the off-course bookmaking market should only proceed if Ladbroke-owned tracks do not supply greyhound races to BAGS and Ladbrokes transfer their share of SIS acquired from Coral to the greyhound racing industry.

This motion has been signed by a total of 21 MPs, 1 of these signatures have been withdrawn.