2 Gambling Commission’s approach to the licensed sector

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We intend to take a similar approach by giving the Gambling Commission the power to apply to court for such an order and use these powers to disrupt illegal gambling operators. In the most serious instances of non-compliance or risks of harm, Ofcom will also have the power to apply to the courts for “business disruption measures”. The Gambling Commission, as well as evidence from the Review, has shown that unlicensed sites pose an increased risk to the most vulnerable consumers. The black market is relatively easy for people to access who are actively trying to find and gamble with illegal operators online. From the limited evidence that is available, we would assume that the size of the black market does not currently account for more than 2.5% of remote gambling that takes place in Great Britain. The Danish Gambling Authority’s 2022 Report on illegal gambling estimates that the online gambling channelisation rate (the percentage of all gambling that takes place legally) is 98% in Great Britain and therefore the black market accounts for 2% of online gambling.

This includes lotteries, betting on sports and horse races, bingo, as well as gaming machines at pubs and land-based casinos. We do not see this as being an issue for operators or manufacturers as it is already widely available on Category B gaming machines within all land-based gambling premises. While it is acknowledged that the risk of gambling harm may increase somewhat following a transition to 50/50, the stipulation outlined in Option 2 would ensure that operators offer a balance of higher and lower stake gaming machines.

Other London casinos also use this method, with one reporting that in a typical year, 48% of overall money exchanged for chips is accepted via international cheques. For the purposes of this assessment, we assume that 15% to 30% of revenue constrained by slots limits is spent on other online casino games instead. These include extending session length (to stake the same total amount), spending on different products, migrating to products in the land-based sector, ceasing gambling in the licensed sector altogether, or adjusting staking patterns. Checks will be mandatory across all operators (so customers cannot entirely avoid them by using a different operator as they might at present). This differs significantly from the present experience reported by some individual operators where they suggest the majority of their GGY above enhanced check thresholds is lost due to high non-compliance with the data requests.

This includes many casinos monitoring customer expenditure across all gaming products, enhanced due diligence measures with trigger values for spend and loss applied to customers and algorithmic systems that use predictive models to identify customers at risk. While online operators are able to track play precisely and apply more tailored player protections, land-based casinos have adopted a range of measures in recent years that have enhanced player protections and tracking. As outlined in the white paper, it is our intention to bring greater coherence to the licence system by allowing 1968 Act casinos of a certain size to have the same gaming machine allowance as Small 2005 Act casinos. Unlike most commercial gambling, Category D gaming machines, which include coin pushers and crane grabs, are not restricted by age. In order to future proof the gaming machine industry and adapt to modern payment technologies, we are seeking views on a range of player protections that will ensure players can use modern payment methods whilst mitigating the risk of harm. Measures that we are seeking views on are intended to address inconsistencies between the different types of casino licence, as well as levelling the playing field to an extent between land-based and online operators.

All operators must also adhere to our Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). Our guidance summarises the legal background and legislation which operators must follow to be compliant. The NRA sets out the key money laundering and terrorist financing risks for the UK. HM Treasury and the Home Office have published the national risk assessment (NRA) of money laundering and terrorist financing 2020 (opens in new tab).

Encouraging further industry innovation within the current framework is unlikely to achieve meaningful progress due to limitations with meeting wider consumer preferences. Consumer preferences therefore indicate that cashless would need to complement, rather than replace, cash as a gambling payment method. 45% of respondents would not be happy at all to pay for gambling via cashless payment methods. 77% felt that cashless makes it easier to spend more on gambling than intended, and 66% said that using cashless payment methods made it feel like they are spending less money than they actually are.

This would potentially generate an additional £1,560,000 in total annual funding for local authorities and increase average annual costs per premises by £167. This would potentially generate an additional £780,000 in total annual funding for local authorities and increase average annual costs per premises by £84. The higher end takes into consideration that some local authorities may need additional funding to carry out the full extent of administration of their gambling duties and gambling enforcement, such as the development of policy statements.

2 Gambling Commission’s approach to the licensed sector

For more on how protections like these work in practice, see our responsible gambling UK guide. This aligns UK gambling AML standards with broader financial services requirements. Enhanced AML checks — anti-money-laundering procedures are more rigorous under the these tested platforms, with enhanced source-of-funds verification required for high-value customers.

Remote Gaming Duty Increase to 40%

While the risks vary by product and other factors, gambling participation is generally not in itself harmful and may even be positive. A YouGov survey commissioned by GambleAware estimated that 6% of the population are negatively affected by someone else’s gambling (for example through relationship strain or financial hardship) and that women are overrepresented in this category. However, a small proportion do suffer significant harm as a result of gambling, and the PHE evidence review included a detailed quantitative analysis on this issue. It is clear that gambling-related harms can ruin lives, wreck families, and damage communities, with issues including mental health and relationship problems, debts that cannot be repaid, crime, or even suicide in extreme cases. However, Public Health England (PHE) compiled, assessed and reviewed evidence on gambling participation and harm as part of the Gambling-related harms evidence review which was initially published in September 2021, then revised in January 2023 by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.

If so, check out this page, which tells you everything from the top casinos through to the games on offer. In addition, all gambling sites are now required to pay a 15% tax on all profits generated from British customers. By the time the British Parliament passed the Gambling Act 2005, which modernised the gambling industry, many Brits were already intimately acquainted with all forms of wagering.

In addition to the written submissions sent to DCMS, we have considered a number of other sources of evidence. During the call for evidence period, we also noted a number of submissions from members of the public which came as part of coordinated campaigns on various specific issues. For example, 97.5% of respondents expressed their view that all gambling advertising should be banned, while 83.2% of the respondents said they would like to see the age limits for gambling increased above 18. Overall, the submissions from members of 38 Degrees demonstrated a generally negative view of gambling. Additionally, we note that these individual responses are far shorter and typically do not provide as much detailed evidence as the submissions sent directly to DCMS.

Some land-based operators proposed that players in venues other than casinos should be able to choose to allocate a small proportion of their stake towards an additional prize pot. A number of proposals from the land-based industry related to concepts of new machine games and categories of gaming machine which do not currently fit into existing regulations or current technical standards. In response to this, we received a number of proposals for changes to rules surrounding gaming machines in venues. We agree that operators should maintain a range of payment options, including cash, to allow for customer choice and ensure that gambling harm is kept to a minimum.

Last month, the Gambling Commission fined William Hill over £19 million for failures including allowing a customer to spend £23,000 in just 20 minutes. If gambling stops being fun, use one of the free independent services below. Independent UK casino reviews and regulatory guides. NHS-funded assessment and treatment, including the National Problem Gambling Clinic. Independent charity providing safer-gambling information and tools.

More generally, the Commission is known to issue cease and desist letters, carry out test purchasing, take steps to disrupt payment flows and engaging with search engines to prevent URLs belonging to unlicensed operators appearing in search results. For instance, the Commission has demonstrated a willingness to initially engage with those that operate (without a licence) offerings that have hints of licensable products before requesting that such entity either apply for and obtain a licence or prevent consumers in Great Britain from accessing such offering, whilst making clear that to continue doing so may amount to an offence under the Gambling Act 2005. Substantial fines have been imposed, individuals have been sanctioned pursuant to their “personal management licences” and licences have been suspended. The British regulatory authorities have taken something of a global lead in the enforcement of regulation, particularly in relation to “source of wealth” and “proceeds of crime” omissions and also failures in social responsibility obligations owed by operators to players. That said, non-gambling services are generally carved out of this wide net – payment processing, marketing affiliates and other ancillary services such as fraud prevention and age verification are per se not regarded as “gambling”.

Measures to improve access to data

• Are there any functions that local authorities/ licensing boards do not exercise at present, but could if fees were increased (e.g. a more proactive enforcement policy)?
• While we welcome these improvements, this is still far lower than other gambling venues and other age restricted products.
• Operators can only market to you if you have opted in per product (casino, bingo, sports) and per channel (SMS, email, push).
• By balancing the interests of consumers, operators, and regulators, the UK has established itself as a global leader in casino regulation, setting the standard for responsible and transparent gambling practices.
• Using data on the number of machines currently in casinos and information provided in an industry call for evidence response, we estimate that this could increase the number of Category B machines in the current national casino estate from 2,800 to 5,400.

The white paper indicated that we would expect industry to strictly adhere to this ratio and we would set out detailed requirements in further consultation. We welcome further evidence on the unmet consumer demand in the consultation response. A number of premises, particularly those located in motorway service stations, chose to retain their existing entitlements. Please explain your answer, including an alternative proposal for SSBT entitlements where applicable. Do you agree with the proposed entitlements for Self-Service Betting Terminals (SSBTs) based on the sliding scale? Casinos that are currently permitted to offer betting may site a maximum of 40 Self-Service Betting Terminals (SSBTs).

There are numerous charitable lottery operators that operate under certain regulatory constraints. On 1 February 2024, the Gambling Commission granted Allwyn Entertainment Ltd a 10-year licence to operate the National Lottery, replacing the previous licensee Camelot. Casinos in the UK are generally operated under historic licences that were rolled forward under the “new” Gambling Act 2005. In addition to the LCCP, the British regulator also publishes a large body of literature comprising regulatory advice, policies and guidance which licensees are expected to take account of.The financial regulation of gambling is set out mostly in the British Finance Acts and provides for various levels of duty upon different types of gambling.

The most recent year for which we have combined Health Survey data is 2016, in NatCen’s report Gambling Behaviour in Great Britain in 2016. These have also been updated a number of times since 2005, with guidance also tightened where needed to mitigate particular risks (e.g. banning content with strong appeal to children from October 2022). Gaming machine stake and prize limits are set out in secondary legislation and have been changed a number of times by the Secretary of State since the 2005 Act.

The responses received from the third sector also raised concerns about the potential for increased gambling-related harm to occur alongside greater numbers of Category B machines being made available. One operator, under both options, stated that it would increase the number of Category B cabinets machines by 2 to 3 per venue, while removing the vast number of smaller in-fill gaming machines. Evidence provided for Option 1 suggests that increases in Category B cabinet gaming machines would be moderate in the short-term. The arcade sector similarly reported that Option 1 and Option 3 would result in the removal of underused Category C and D machines, whilst Option 2 would have no impact or result in increased numbers of Category C and D gaming machines. This relates primarily to underused Category C and D gaming machines.

The personal information we collect and process is the data provided to us directly by you in the responses to this consultation. This notice sets out how DCMS will use your personal data as part of our legal obligations with regard to data protection. For the purposes of personal data collected in the course of this consultation, DCMS is the data controller.

Protections for this group will be increased, for instance through earlier interventions to assess financial risks, and structural controls such as a lower stake limit for online slots games. This will create a clear distinction between gambling products for adults and lower risk products accessible to children (such as crane grabbers or coin pushers) which have non-cash prizes or are entirely unlike an adult gambling product. We will also give legislative backing to the current voluntary measures preventing the use of Category D cash out slot machines by under 18s. We nonetheless challenge other providers to adopt this precautionary measure, so that there is no online or widely and easily accessible gambling for under 18s. We non gamestop casino expect all operators to take steps to offer appropriate redress to customers where needed and if the ombudsman does not attract sufficient cooperation or deliver the protections as we expect, we will legislate to put its position beyond doubt.

You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Some respondents pointed out how this voluntary albeit multifaceted arrangement varies from the finance sector, where the FCA publishes guidance on how financial promotions must present information about risk (an example is in Box 10 below). However, the limitations of such tools are documented in research, and further research is needed to understand the risk of unintended consequences such as distorting player perceptions of risk (explored further in the previous chapter’s section on safer products).

The maximum annual fee for an adult gaming centre (arcade) is £1,000 in England and Wales, and £700 in Scotland. For example, the maximum annual fee for a large casino is £10,000 in England and Wales, and £7,500 in Scotland. Licensing fees vary by premises type. Therefore, the proposals set out in this chapter will only apply to licensing authorities in England and Wales.

There is significant detail underneath this population problem gambling rate which the PHE review considered. There are some recent signs of a decrease in problem gambling rates, with the Gambling Commission’s quarterly surveys finding a steady fall over recent years to a low of 0.2% in the year to December 2022. Based on Health Survey data, we now estimate there to be approximately 300,000 people across Great Britain who meet the definition of being a ‘problem gambler’. Firstly, the best available evidence suggests that the large majority of people who gamble suffer no ill effects. Gambling harm is often a result of the interplay between individual susceptibility, environmental factors, the products themselves and operator actions.

Research based on combined data from Scottish and English health surveys over the last decade indicates that scratchcard play could be a risk factor for young people. Large society lottery operators sell a wide range of products (lottery tickets, scratchcards and online games) through a range of means including retail, door-to-door canvassing, phone, post, email and online. The growing body of evidence helps us to understand how harmful gambling may relate to other harmful behaviours or vulnerabilities, and how tackling gambling harms requires a broad approach. PHE also examined systematic peer-reviewed research to identify risk factors for gambling and harmful gambling. Gambling Commission data suggests that at-risk and problem gambling rates among 11 to 16-year-olds have increased since 2014, although significant changes to the survey methodology make year-to-year comparisons difficult.

Since online casino, poker, and sports betting became a popular industry in the UK, the country’s lawmakers have relied on external licensing bodies to regulate sites serving British residents. Although the United Kingdom is home to the world’s best legal online casinos, poker rooms, and sports betting sites, the industry isn’t content to stand still. There are multiple categories for gaming machines based on the maximum prize available.