The Bingo industry has slammed the Budget for failing to deliver any benefit to game players.

Sir Peter Fry, chairman of the Bingo Association, said Gordon Brown had failed to deliver on promises made in last year's Budget statement.

On Wednesday Gordon Brown announced that he would abolish the Bingo Tax this August.

The current taxes on bingo players' stakes and on bingo prizes will be replaced by a gross tax on company profits at 15 per cent.

But in an interview with ePolitix.com, Sir Peter said he was "very disappointed" with the news.

"When Gordon Brown announced that a possible change in taxation was likely in last year's Budget, he indicated that he wanted it to be a system which would benefit our players and would also benefit the industry," he said.

"This we were pleased to hear because we've been asking for years for a reduction in the heaviest tax burden of any sector in the gaming industry and we desperately needed the ability to give bigger prizes to attract more players.

"Frankly what he has done has not achieved either of those objectives."

He said that companies in the industry would not be able to put up prize levels, nor would they be able to invest in their premises.

The prize in an average game in a bingo club will go up by 45 to 50 pence, he said. "This puts it in its context and shows how irrelevant it is."

"We really feel that we have been conned," sir Peter added.

"If anybody puts down some criteria and then fails to meet them then we believe its very culpable on his part.

"Secondly though, and I think this is really more important for our customers, they have been cheated. They were quite clearly told that there will be a benefit to them."