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October 8, 2012

Desmond’s Health Lottery fails to reach funding target

By William Turvill

Daily Express owner Richard Desmond’s Health Lottery has raised less than half its funding target one year after launch.

The alternative lottery has raised £24.5m for local health charities, rather than the projected £50m, according to The Independent.

Ticket sales, projected to have earned £250m by now, have earned £119m.

Desmond, who also owns Channel 5 and a number of other media outlets, launched the Health Lottery with a £50m investment last year.

Since then, the Health Lottery has been embroiled in a string of disputes with Camelot, owner of the National Lottery.

One of Camelot’s complaints has been that the Health Lottery, which runs a number of regional draws, has been promoted nationally by Desmond's media outlets.

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