Westminster has a gambling problem; many MPs are addicted. As we know from last summer, they’ll even bet on the future of their own seats at an election. The betting companies are also among the biggest providers of corporate hospitality, doling out tickets for sporting and cultural events beloved by politicians of all stripes. They are also among the most generous donors, pouring £1.08 million into Labour coffers in the last few years and giving £20,000 to help fund Rachel Reeves’s office in opposition.

That may be why gambling companies do not appear unduly concerned by rumours that Reeves could increase their tax obligations in the looming budget. They know successive Tory and Labour governments have shied away from taking on the industry.

But the