UK Gambling Commission

The UK Gambling Commission is relatively new to the domestic gambling industry in the UK having been established by the Gambling Act 2005 and only becoming operational in 2007. Previously the Gaming Board for Great Britain handled regulation of most (but not all) of the UK gambling industry however, the Gambling Act 2005 came into being as a consequence of concerns over the gambling industry.

The UK Gambling Commission is responsible for licensing operators and there is a distinction made between online and physical gambling outlets with licensing businesses. The online gaming sector is caught by very wide legislation which covers not only internet gaming but those operators using any telecommunications device or method for taking bets and communicating results. There are separate rules for both forms of operation but one effect of the legislation has been to simplify and clarify the law where previously it was unclear as to what the legal position was. The UK Gambling Commission now has very clear directives for all UK based and non-UK based operators whether with a physical outlet or a virtual one.

The major concerns of the legislators have become the three main objectives of the UK Gambling Commission; these are:-

• Keeping crime out of gambling;
• Ensuring gambling is conducted fairly and openly; and
• Protecting children and vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

In the 1990's a wave of legislation was introduced by European Union law makers targeting the illicit use of money from criminal activities; money laundering. As a consequence virtually every aspect of business and commercial life in the European Union is bound by the provisions of money laundering, ant-crime and anti-terrorism legislation and the UK gambling industry is one of those sectors assessed as high risk. As a direct result, removing the criminal element from the gambling industry and keeping it out is the first stated objective of the UK Gambling Commission.

The second major objective is to ensure gambling is conducted fairly and in a transparent fashion which can only be to the benefit of all involved, both players and the businesses that rely upon good customer relations for business again and again.

The final major objective is a delicate subject; protecting children and the vulnerable. The UK Gambling Commission has propagated rules and principles which licensees must abide by and specifically with children both as participants in gambling activities and as employees. There is a general prohibition on children gambling in the UK and strict restrictions on the employment of young persons and children in licensed establishments. The definition of vulnerable persons is a little vague but it is thought to cover those who are assessed or ought to be recognized as having a problem with gambling and are therefore not children necessarily.

The UK Gambling Commission is also active in dealing with the needs of those who develop a gambling problem and it works with a number of organisations tasked with delivering treatment and therapy to those who are affected as well as taking part in research into the condition. GamCare is one of the primary partners for helping those with gambling issues.