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The current holder of the operating licence for the UK National Lottery – Camelot – faced a legal setback earlier this week because a London judge decided not to side with the company’s request to fast-track legal proceedings against the country’s gambling regulator. On April 19th, a High Court of Justice of England and Wales judge said that rushing out the legal proceedings against the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) over the watchdog’s decision to grant the fourth National Lottery operating licence to Allwyn would not be the right thing to…

The proposal for a cashless gambling card was controversial enough to cause a division in the Perrottet government. However, the new gaming minister is to dump the compulsory pokies card with NSW favouring opt-in digital payments. The reform introducing cashless gaming cards was introduced in 2020 by Victor Dominello, NSW Customer Service and Digital Minister. The cashless payment method was supposed to have both recreational players and high-risk gamblers charge funds into their respective smart cards. The cashless pokies cards were just a part of a larger-scale plan to introduce…

Long-time anti-gambling advocate Tim Costello has warned that Australian codes still claim that sponsorship deals with gambling and sports betting operators are crucial for keeping premier sports alive in the country. The sponsorships and the fact they have been heavily promoted to the public have helped create ties between gambling and sports, with particular focus on the Australian Football League (AFL). As a result of all this, Australian children start accepting gambling as something normal from a young age, not to mention they are left to believe that gambling and…

Last month the UK Gambling Commission chose Allwyn as the new licence holder of the National Lottery. The new lottery operator is due to head the entity after the licence of the current operator, Camelot Group, expires in 2024. Following an investigation by the Mail on Sunday, it was revealed that the chair of the Committee for the Fourth National Lottery Competition, Stephen Cohen, had some ties to Russia. The new operator of the National Lottery is Allwyn Entertainment, which is a company established and operated by the Czech oil…

The regulator of the UK gambling sector is set to roll out a consultation on proposed affordability checks for the industry. The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) revealed that the consultation on one of the hottest and most controversial topics associated with the local gambling sector will cover 3 areas that have been considered a priority – financial vulnerability, significant unaffordable losses on gambling, and binge gambling customers are actually unable to afford – as well as the proposed thresholds for action for each one of them. The industry watchdog made…

GamCare, a problem gambling support charity in the UK, revealed that the number of women accessing gambling support in the UK has risen by 6% over the last year. The charity organisation, which currently provides professionals with various training sessions on gambling, also found that the majority of participants – a stunning 85% – have actually improved their understanding of gambling-related harm and their skills to identify women who need treatment or support for their compulsive gambling habits. The figure was provided by inFocus Consulting following an independent evaluation. The…

Today, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has unveiled new rules on action for gamblers who are considered at risk of being most affected by gambling-related harm. The gambling regulatory body of the UK announced that the new rules are scheduled to come into effect on September 12th, 2022. The UKGC further noted they are expected to ensure better protection for more vulnerable customers who are at risk. Apart from the rules themselves, the UK Gambling Commission is also expected to issue new guidance for companies operating in the sector in…

UK Ministers will consider gambling and social media as potential risk factors while working on a new suicide prevention plan. Reportedly, the harmful effect of the coronavirus pandemic that was inflicted on local people’s mental health will also be taken into account in the first update to the suicide prevention plan in 10 years. According to experts who have been advising the UK Government, focusing on issues such as gambling, online safety, and Covid-19 pandemic effects reflected the changes in the pattern in suicide risks. The suggestion has been made…

Some of the largest and most powerful gambling regulatory bodies in the industry have recently been brought together by the ICE World Regulatory Briefing. Mr Andrew Rhodes, the CEO of the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), has also participated in the event, at which he highlighted how important so-called cross-border regulation is for building an industry that would be able to resist big players in the sector. The boss of the UK gambling regulator further called for more decisive action when it comes to dealing with problem gambling and tackling any…

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has awarded itself £155 million derived from ticket sales of the National Lottery that were meant to be donated to good causes, recent reports claim. As revealed by the Daily Mail, the UK gambling regulatory body got the money to cover administration costs which surpassed the budgeted funds by about £50 million, although the money was supposed to be used to fund charitable organisations and community groups. The report says that the chief executive officer of the UKGC, Andrew Rhodes, has admitted that a total…