Revealed: The Midlands' National Lottery have and have-nots

Labour deputy leader Tom Watson is calling for reform over how national lottery grants are allocated, after new figures showed the region was being short changed compared to other areas.

Research from GPS Culture shows that areas that spend the most on tickets often get the least back in grants.

And according to the data, the West Midlands Combined Authority region is one of the hardest hit, receiving £360 million less than people in the area contributed to funds for good causes between 2010 and 2017.

In the four Black Country boroughs people spent nearly £40 million on lottery tickets over the period, but received less than £16m back in grant funding – a shortfall of £23.7m.

Short-changed? How the money is distributed:

Figures show a wide variation in Lottery funding given to areas of the country. A breakdown of funding by Parliamentary constituency showed Manchester Central got £31.6million in 2015, but Barnsley East less than £90,000. Nottingham South got £64.8m but Ashfield, a few miles away, just £930,000. Out of £86.1m in National Lottery Project Grants in 2018/19, nearly a quarter – £21.4m – went to London.

West Bromwich East MP Tom Watson, Labour's deputy leader and shadow culture secretary, has vowed to "democratise" the lottery with new transparency measures for ticket sales.

He also says Labour will give communities a greater say in how lottery money is spent locally.

Reform

"People in our area often buy lottery tickets and that should mean we get our fair share back in grants for good causes that the lottery generates," he said.

"But we don't, and that's not right.

"Labour will shake up the national lottery to make sure we know how much each area contributes toward good causes and that we aren't short changed by what we get in return."

GPS Culture, a research partnership which looks at national policy reform, based its data on an analysis of local shops that sell lottery tickets.

Sandwell councillor Steve Trow, who is part of the group, said: "There is understandably an expectation from people who play the lottery that the benefits of it should be felt within reach of where they live.

"They imagine their communities and young people in the area benefitting, but it is often not the case. The generosity of lottery players should not be exploited by governments with the collusion of distributors.

"It is totally unjustifiable that the least well off appear to be funding the pleasures of people in London and those who are more wealthy."

Camelot, which runs the lottery, does not publish official data on the amount of money generated by lottery ticket sales in areas throughout the country.

The lottery licence is due for renewal in 2023, with the process beginning next year.