Leading high street bookmakers have attacked news reports that they are driving smaller operators out of business.

The BBC also stated at the weekend that the larger players in the industry have been accused of targeting deprived areas questioning the moral implications of such business actions.

However well known bookmaker Paddy Power said such statements are without foundation and that they make no sense.

“ It takes a number of years for a bookmaker shop to make profit so its not as easy as just opening one up and it succeeding immediately. With regards to opening branches in deprived areas surely it makes less sense to target areas where there isn’t much money circulating so this argument doesn’t stand up to scrutiny” he said.

Small family run bookmakers no longer exist in the same numbers they once did in the UK and industry experts believe this is because they cannot compete with the larger chains.

There are about 730 licenced off course bookmakers in the UK operating almost 9,000 individual betting shops.

As an employer the British bookmakers has significant strength with just under 40,000 people working in shops across the country.

Its estimated that about a fifth of all adults use a bookmakers at some stage during the year here with the top events being the Aintree Grand National and the Gold Cup.

As an income generator for the exchequer bookmakers contribute more than £370 million in gross profits tax and about £50 million in machine duty.

They rake in £120 million in payments to horseracing and £30 million in payments to greyhound racing.