THE charity lottery that was hailed as a more generous alternative to the National Lottery yesterday became less charitable, by more than tripling the fees it charges worth causes.

Peter Jones, the Tote chairman, who took over as Chariot’s chairman in a boardroom rout last month, said yesterday that charities would have to pay a 6p-in-the-pound charge to collect donations from each draw. This is on top of an original charge of 1.8p per pound.

Chariot promised to give 30p in the pound to charity, more than the 28p given by the National Lottery. After charges are deducted, charities will get 22.5p per pound from Chariot.

Despite the rise in charges, top charities said that they would continue to back Chariot’s monday lottery because it was a “worthwhile project”.

The change in charges came as Chariot admitted that it had sold an average of only 396,000 tickets in its first five draws, instead of the two million that it had expected.

Mr Jones, who, with John Finan, last month helped to save Chariot with £500,000 of their own money, said the higher charge was a temporary move, to be reviewed after six months. All extra fees will be returned to the charities, he said, and the total cost cut to 0.3p per pound within 12 months.

Ken Walker, of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, said: “We’re happy to accept this temporary arrangement, with additional fees rebated in due course, as a constructive way of seeing what we believe is fundamentally a worthwhile project continue.”

Carol Monoyios, of CARE International UK, said: “It’s in our interests, and the interests of the poor people around the world, to support it however we can.”

Mr Jones said that about 60 of the 70 charities that participate in the draws had agreed to the new deal, under which the charities’ contracts will be extended from two to three years, allowing them to participate in up to five additional lotteries. Players in the online game can pick the charity they wish to support from five on rotation.

Last month three of the lottery’s founders were forced out after Chariot spent most of the £12.8 million raised at its 115p-a-share flotation in February. Craig Freeman, managing director, David Gray, administrative director, and Tim Holley, chairman, were blamed for expensive marketing that failed to deliver the sales expected.

Their departure came as Chariot secured a £2.6 million rescue package, funded by a placing at 5p a share. The £250,000 each put in by Mr Jones and Mr Finan gave them about 14 per cent of Chariot between them.

JUST THE TICKET?

How does the monday lottery work?

Player buy tickets at playmonday.com. They can decide how many weeks to play, and pick the charities they wish to benefit from each draw

What did monday hope to raise for charity?

£150 million a year

How was monday more generous than the National Lottery?

The National Lottery gives 28p in every £1 to charity and 50p back as prizes. Monday, which is not liable to 12 per cent sales duty on tickets, said it would use this advantage to return 55p to players and give 30p to charity

Why is monday unpopular?

Late amendments meant players could not easily access its website for the first draw. The prize money is lower than the National Lottery’s

What about sales?

By last month an average of 396,000 tickets were sold each week, against the two million expected.

Which major charities does monday support?

They includes Barnardo’s, Big Issue Foundation, British Red Cross, CLIC Sargent Cancer Care, Mencap and the PDSA

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