Staff reporter
Councils are to be given powers to stop betting and vape shops taking over their high streets under new plans announced by Andy Burnham.
Local authorities will be able to reject new betting shops and adult gaming centres, while vape shops will be subject to planning permission under plans Downing Street said could be in place from the start of next year.
which in effect requires councils to allow new gambling premises where applications meet licensing requirements.
This could mark a big shift from changes introduced by Keir Starmer in April that gave councils more scope to consider the number of gambling premises already in an area but stopped short of scrapping the “aim to permit rule”.
As mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham called on Starmer to abolish the rule in January, alongside almost 300 other politicians and campaigners.
Burnham said communities should have much more control over their high streets, where traditional shops, pubs and other services have disappeared while vape and gambling shops have expanded.
Burnham is attempting to make the first weeks of his prime ministership about tangible changes people can see in their everyday lives. Burnham is promising to scrap the “aim to permit” rule in the Gambling act 2005.
A No 10 source said the government was determined to crack down on vape and betting shops because they were two of the most visible signs of decline on high streets, and local people were genuinely concerned. A fast-tracked consultation on the new measures would take six weeks, with the aim of having the measures in place by the start of 2027.
