Ladbroke backs tax reform with 1,000 new jobs

Ladbroke, the betting and gaming arm of the Hilton Group, is creating 1,000 jobs in its high street branches to take advantage of the forthcoming abolition of betting taxes.

The government confirmed recently that it is to scrap the existing 9% tax on punters' bets from October and replace it with a tax on the gross profits of betting companies. The move is expected to lead to a sharp increase in turnover for the industry.

Ladbroke said the new jobs were in addition to the recent creation of 200 posts at the company's head office and a call centre in Liverpool, and were a sign of its confidence in the new industry regime.

A former Las Vegas casino director is meanwhile asking investors to stake £6m in backing the expansion of an online bookmaking service currently owned by Enic, the sports and media group, Tottenham Hotspur's main shareholder.

Eric Semel, 32, who worked as a marketing credit executive at the Mirage Hotel and Casino, has clinched a deal to acquire the digital wagering operator ukbetting.com and is floating the business on the Alternative Investment Market.

A new company, ukbetting plc, will pay £3m in cash and shares for the business with a further payment of up to £3m depending on its performance. It is now seeking to raise £6m via a placing of new shares at 25p each to help expand the online company's 8,000 strong customer base through increased sales and marketing. The placing will value the business at around £7.55m.

The company, which is looking to expand in Europe, will use cash raised by the placing to fund new software systems and technology in order to promote the business through interactive Digital TV and wireless technology. In the 11 months to the end of May ukbetting.com incurred a loss of £457,000 on turnover of £7m.

• A company that has developed an "environmentally responsible" polythene is seeking to raise £5.5m via a placing and open offer to fund marketing initiatives when its shares are listed on AIM.

Symphony, headed by chief executive Michael Laurier, has developed a degradable polythene product which breaks down to leave only water and what it says is a minimal amount of carbon dioxide and harmless solids. It believes it has come up with a solution to the global environmental problem associated with plastic waste from polythene refuse sacks, bin liners and similar products.

"Current sales levels are very encouraging," Mr Laurier said yesterday.