Flutter to cut 1,400 jobs, with 240 Dublin jobs at risk

240 jobs are at risk in Dublin at Flutter, the parent group of gambling company Paddy Power.

The job cuts are concentrated in the company's global headquarters in Clonskeagh in Dublin, which has a total workforce of 1,770.

The 240 Flutter staff, who work across a range of functions including finance, HR, technology, training and lega, will be offered voluntary redundancy.

Flutter's Dublin operation runs a unit which manages activities across the UK and Ireland.

The company announced a reduction of a total of 1,400 jobs across the two jurisdictions following the UK government's decision to increase taxes on betting and gaming.

Plans announced in last year's UK autumn budget saw the rate of remote gaming duty - the tax on online casino games and slots - increase from 21% to 40% earlier this year.

UK firms will also see a new 25% rate of general betting duty for online bets from April next year, up from 15%, as part of the budget changes.

It comes amid speculation that the British government could increase the rate of machine games duty, which is the tax on fruit machines, roulette machines and other slot machines, in their next budget later this month.

Most of the UK job cuts announced today will be concentrated in its offices in Leeds.

The restructuring will also impact UK and Ireland staff based at Flutter hubs in Porto, Portugal, and Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

Flutter said its restructuring plan is likely to cost between $80 and $90m (€71m-€80m)

Last year Flutter announced it was reducing its number of betting shops in the UK and Ireland by 100, resulting in about 200 redundancies in Ireland.

Flutter employs 28,500 people globally and as well as Paddy Power its brands include Sky Bet and Betfair.

Flutter is the latest and largest operator to cut jobs as the UK gambling sector grapples with the most significant tax overhaul in its recent history, with other companies warning of hundreds of millions of dollars in lost earnings.

Ladbrokes owner Entain last month outlined plans to cut about 20% of customer care roles, two months after it said it would remove 500 roles to offset the impact of higher taxes.

It also sent a letter to British Prime Minister Andy Burnham to voice concerns over any further tax increases on the sector.

Additional reporting PA