Richard Desmond asks for ‘generosity’ in £1.3bn National Lottery claim

Payout likely to be funded by taxpayers if media mogul wins case against gambling regulator

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The billionaire media mogul Richard Desmond will urge a court to “err on the side of generosity” in assessing a £1.3bn damages claim against the Gambling Commission that would probably have to be funded by taxpayers if he wins.

Companies owned by the former proprietor of the Daily Express, Asian Babes and Readers’ Wives are suing the gambling regulator in a bitter dispute that opens today.