Author: Daniel Williams

Gambling operators won £1.3 million in stolen funds from a problem gambler without making sure where the funds came from. The revelations once again fuelled concerns about whether the gambling firm’ due diligence to players who lose large amounts of money on their services. The beginning of the week saw a Norwich crown court sentenced the 44-year-old Andy May to four years in jail for fraud after the man confessed that he used to misappropriate funds from the company he worked at. As reported by The Guardian, Mr May siphoned…

Nationwide research has found that the majority of the public in the UK supports a full ban on gambling advertising, while three-quarters of the public believe the authorities should impose take stricter measures in terms of the existing regime. The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), an independent, multi-disciplinary charity, cited the survey in which more than 12,000 people participated, and urged the UK Government to use the ongoing review of the country’s gambling legislative and regulatory framework and reduce the number of gambling adverts aired on various media channels,…

A few days ago, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) released its latest report on the exposure of British children to TV gambling adverts. According to the authority’s report, the exposure of the local underage audiences reached its lowest point for the last 13 years in 2020. The UK advertising regulator published the updated figures about the children’s exposure to age-restricted TV adverts, especially ads for gambling and alcohol, in 2020. The coronavirus outbreak significantly changed the daily routines and behaviours of local consumers, especially considering the periods of lockdown during…

The beginning of the week saw the UK Government publish its response to a consultation on a proposal seeking to increase the fees that gambling operators in the country are expected to pay to the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) for the right to offer their services. The last time when the fees applicable to gambling companies were revised was in 2017. The newly increased fees are expected to help the UK gambling regulatory body respond to new technological developments, risks and challenges, as well as the constantly increasing costs of…

An ongoing social media campaign involving high-profile football experts from the BBC and ITV has faced accusations of making gambling look normal to young audiences. According to opponents, the campaign has also been encouraging problem gambling by promoting betting during the Euro 2020 tournament. Last week, SkyBet rolled out a number of videos featuring Roy Keane, the Irish football manager and an ITV Euro 2020 expert, and Micah Richards, a BBC Euro 2020 pundit, on a special trip to Wembley. The five videos, which are being aired under the SkyBet…

Earlier today, the Victorian Government shared that it will provide the Royal Commission into the Melbourne operations of Crown Resorts with more time and money in order to allow it to expand the range of the issues that are being investigated. The announcement came as another step in the state’s regulatory scrutiny on the Australian gambling giant and was made at a time when Crown Resorts is dealing with the suspension of its new casino licence for its Sydney-based AU$2.2-billion facility. In a statement, issued on June 11th, the Victorian…

Hamilton City Council wants to see SkyCity Hamilton start following suit of other gambling venues around the country and contribute 40% of its poker machine proceeds to the community. For the time being, the Victoria St casino contributes only 1.5% of its poker machine profits to the community on an annual basis. This inconsistency has been highlighted by the draft submission made by Hamilton City Council to the Gambling Commission’s upcoming review of casino licence conditions around the country. Currently, the gambling operators that hold the so-called Class 4 licence,…

The UK division of Sazka Group – Allwyn – has appointed Dr Mark Griffiths, a psychologist and behavioural addiction specialist, to an advisory board for its takeover offer for the fourth operating licence of the National Lottery. Dr Griffiths will have advisory functions on player protection measures and is set to establish a close relationship not only with Allwyn bid chair Sir Keith Mills but also with other researchers who specialise in studying problem gambling. The company will count on his 34-year experience, during which Dr Griffiths has served as…

In a submission to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the advertising regulator in the UK has noted that the normalisation of gambling came as a consequence of the 2005 Gambling Act and could have been predicted. Submitting its written opinion to the DCMS as part of the consultation on the 2005 Gambling Act, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has explained that the piece of legislation’s duty was to depict gambling advertising that makes potentially dangerous or irresponsible gambling behaviour as normal to the wider public. Within…

A UK High Court judge found that the Irish gambling operator Paddy Power did not really care about a gambling addict who was not able to afford the losses he generated at the time he placed bets with the company. Mr Justice Griffiths said that the bookmaker was aware of the fact that Tony Parente, a businessman, was gambling as if he found it hard to control his gambling habits. The High Court Judge further noted that Paddy Power knew from its own monitoring that Mr Parente suffered from unhealthy…