the person actually laying the bet could be considered an agent, especially if they take a cut of the stake. However, lottery syndicates are extremely common and even officially encouraged. The legal fine point is whether the person collecting the individual stakes and placing the bets is doing so with or without profit (regardless of whether that person is also a member of the syndicate). Sweepstakes for the Grand National and occasionally other events are extremely common in offices, and are generally winked at if played for small stakes and not for profit (or that any profit goes to charity). Publicans must also be vigilant in ensuring that their customers do not pass betting slips between each other but only bet for themselves. In general, it is illegal for the holder of a licence to sell alcohol to facilitate betting on the premises. Most pubs in the UK have a one-armed bandit of one kind or another, but the prizes are strictly controlled. The law allows larger prizes in private clubs. Economy and taxation "Betting duty" at 6.75% was applied to sports bets until 2001 when it was replaced by a 15% tax on gross profits. From 1 December 2014, the Gambling (Licensing & Advertising) Bill will change the taxation of remote gambling from a 'place of supply' basis to a 'point of consumption' basis. The betting industry alone is reported to contribute £6 billion as of January 2010, 0.5% of GDP. Furthermore, it employs over 100,000 people and generates £700 Million in tax revenue. Health implications According to the NHS Long Term Plan more than 400,000 people in England are problem gamblers and two million people are at risk. Health provision for problem gamblers is very limited, according to Bill Moyes, chair of the Gambling Commission. Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, pointed out in 2019 that the industry spends £1.5 billion a year on marketing but under £10 million to picking up the health consequences. The industry refers to problem gamblers as VIPs. According to The Guardian, the industry actively encourages VIPs to gamble more by providing them with free gifts. The industry recruits staff to target VIPs and get them to spend more, to contact VIP's who have not gambled for some time and get them to restart gambling, to identify less serious gamblers who could become VIP's and get them to gamble more. Age restrictions