UK APPG launches Gambling White Paper inquiry

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Gambling-Related Harm will evaluate measures proposed in the Gambling White Paper.

UK.- The British Parliament’s All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Gambling-Related Harm has announced that it has begun an inquiry into the government’s review of the 2005 Gambling Act. It intends to evaluate the measures the government put forward in its Gambling White Paper and propose specific measures in many areas.

The APPG will undertake a series of oral evidence sessions and will accept written submissions from interested parties up until July 11. It said it will seek opinions on some of the areas where the Gambling White Paper left specifics undefined, including stake limits for online slots, opt-out deposit limits and other ways for game design to be modified to prevent harm.

The APPG will also explore proposals for affordability checks and how the proposed statutory levy to fund gambling harm research, treatment and prevention could be operated and administered. Other topics to be explored will include data sharing and how a new gambling ombudsman should function.

It says it will aim to hold the government to account and ensure that reforms move forward quickly. Some proposals in the paper, including giving more enforcement powers to the Gambling Commission, were slated for attention “when parliamentary time allows”, but the APPG will push for them to be made priorities.

One of the powers to be considered for the Gambling Commission is the ability to apply for a court order to force payment providers to block unlicensed gambling sites. The regulator currently has a voluntary arrangement with providers.

It said: “The APPG will also continue to scrutinise further areas of potential harm. These include those not included within the remit of the white paper such as the operation of the National Lottery and the emergence of new forms of gambling.”

Meanwhile, the Gambling Commission is also holding more consultations in the wake of the Gambling White Paper, including a proposal for customers to have to opt-in to receiving online bonuses. The APPG generally takes a harsh line against gambling and has in the past been accused by the industry of taking a “prohibitionist” approach.

An APPG that acted in favour of the gambling sector, the Parliamentary All-Party Betting & Gaming group, has been disbanded.