Ministers have today pledged to give local authorities more control over the number and clustering of high street betting shops.

A long-awaited report from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS),has outlined new rules giving local communities the chance to have their views taken into consideration when plans for new betting shops are submitted.

The proposed guidance from the DCMS, which has regulatory oversight over the gambling industry, would put bookmakers in a new planning class giving councils the power to vet and scrutinise applications for new betting shops and refuse them if they want.