The current operator of the UK National Lottery – Camelot Group – is set to launch a High Court challenge following the decision of the UK gambling regulatory body to choose Allwyn Entertainment Ltd as its preferred candidate for the 4th operating licence of the country’s National Lottery. The current holder of the National Lottery operating permit claims that the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) broke the law when making the decision to award Allwyn and its owner – Czech billionaire Karel Komarek – with the licence.
The Telegraph has revealed that Camelot Group plans to start legal proceedings against the gambling regulatory body of the UK soon, with a judicial review and a High Court procurement challenge to be included in the proceedings.
Reportedly, the legal action is expected to be based on allegations that the UKGC had altered the rules after the current holder of the lucrative gambling licence was revealed as the frontrunner in the competition under a special scoring system designed to measure the applicants’ offers.
A “risk factor” discount estimated at up to 15% was expected to be applied to financial projections by the applicants for the UK National Lottery operating permit. According to reports, Camelot UK is now set to make claims that a discount was originally applied by the UKGC but the Commission later changed it to 0 when the final decision was made. Such a change turned out crucial for the final result of the judgement because the final estimates provided by Allwyn Entertainment involved projections for about £38 billion worth of contribution to good causes, which was much larger than the one provided by Camelot Group.
Allwyn Owner’s Business Ties with Russian Energy Giant Gazprom to be Checked as Part of UK Vetting Process
The aforementioned “change of rules” is believed to have surprised not only Camelot but Allwyn, too, which had started its own legal action against the UK gambling regulatory body only days before the UKGC officially announced it as the preferred bidder for the UK National Lottery licence in mid-March.
However, if Camelot Group starts a legal battle against the gambling watchdog’s chosen candidate, Allwyn Entertainment would be prevented from signing the contract for the fourth operating permit of the UK National Lottery. In the lawsuit, an intervention of the chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee – Julian Knight MP – is likely to become subject to scrutiny.
On the other hand, the country’s gambling minister Chris Philp is currently seeking fresh assurances regarding the business ties of Allwyn’s owner – Mr Komarek – to Gazprom, the Russian energy giant and gas producer. Mr Philp has confirmed that he had addressed the UKGC and asked it for assurance that it had conducted the necessary in-depth inquiries to make sure that the company that received the provisional licence for the National Lottery operation meets all the requirements. He further reminded that there were also arrangements for the company to undergo a special “secure vetting process”, and such checks are set to begin shortly.
So far, the UK Gambling Commission has not commented on the additional checks arranged by the Government on the owner of Allwyn Entertainment. Earlier in March, the regulator noted that no applications for the National Lottery licence had been affected by the sanctions associated with the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine.
- Author
Daniel Williams
