Northern Ireland: new gambling legislation to be introduced
Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey has said that Northern Ireland will begin to review gambling legislation in weeks.
UK.- Northern Ireland will finally begin to introduce the first major changes to its gambling laws in more than three decades.
Deirdre Hargey, Communities Minister on the Northern Ireland Executive, said the first of two legislative updates would be introduced in the next few weeks.
The first phase of the planned two-stage update of legislation will include the introduction of a mandatory code of practice and a statutory levy for operators.
Northern Ireland’s new legislation will also expand the definition of cheating to include attempted cheating and will make it an offence to allow children to use gaming machines.
It’s also believed that bookmakers’ opening hours will be relaxed to allow them to open on Sundays and on Good Friday. A consultation in 2019 showed support from 66 per cent of the public for such a move.
The changes would be the first since the implementation of Northern Ireland’s Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements Order in 1985. A second, more comprehensive update to legislation will follow at a later date. It is expected that online gaming will be addressed in that later phase.
Hargey said: “Gambling legislation has remained largely unchanged since it was enacted thirty-five years ago. As a result, gambling regulation here has not kept pace with industry and technological changes. In my view change is long overdue.”
She added: “It is clear from our consultation that people are content for some of the existing legal constraints on gambling to be relaxed. But they also believe that government, the gambling industry and others need to do much more to prevent, control and combat problem gambling.
“The pragmatic approach I am taking will mean that we deliver some much needed change in the short term, while simultaneously ensuring that complex areas of regulation and online gambling are given the time and consideration they need.”
The introduction of a statutory levy on gambling operators has also been proposed in the UK. The measure was proposed by responsible gambling charities GambleAware and YGAM in their responses to the Department of Digital Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) ongoing review of the 2005 Gambling Act review.
Nothern Ireland’s “Obsolete” gambling legislation
Northern Ireland’s All-Party Group on Reducing Harm Related to Gambling, chaired by Ulster Unionist MLA Robbie Butler, has described gambling regulation in Northern Ireland as “obsolete”.
Butler said MLAs from different political parties would investigate how the law could be reformed, and suggested that legislation could be stricter than in England and Wales.
He told local newspaper Belfast Live: “While we recognise that for many gambling can be fun and a way to socialise, it can adversely impact the health and wellbeing of individuals and families.
“One of our first tasks will be to hold an inquiry into how we need to reform Northern Ireland’s obsolete gambling legislation. Mobile communications mean that almost everyone has instant access to online gambling.
“However, this aspect of the industry is largely unregulated as the relevant legislation – the Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 – pre-dates the internet.”
Last September, the Northern Ireland Assembly began an inquiry into reducing gambling-related harm as it looked to reform gambling legislation.
At the launch of the inquiry, the Stormont assembly’s All-Party Group (APG) on Reducing Harm Related to Gambling revealed research that found 60 per cent of people to be in favour of banning all forms of gambling advertising.
