Gambling Commission to focus efforts on tier-two to tier-four operators in 2024

The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) held its AGM in Central London on Thursday, 29 February, where it welcomed leading figures from within the gambling industry as well as regulators and politicians.

Gambling Commission (GC) CEO Andrew Rhodes, gambling minister Stuart Andrew and shadow gambling minister Stephanie Peacock all spoke at the meeting.

In his speech, Rhodes highlighted part of the GC’s focus this year would be on tier-two to tier-four operators given GC casework had suggested compliance is lower in these businesses. 

He said: “From a regulatory point of view, it cannot be acceptable for operators to make the changes and investment they have to drive higher standards, only to potentially observe others in the same market appearing to ‘get away’ with lower standards.”

The CEO also commented on areas that may be of focus in the future, including restrictions on play and customer withdrawals.

He shared: “We are not at a point where we are looking to move towards formal use of powers or to open up another front for regulatory changes. But we are still getting complaints in these areas, and so we do want to see operators making proper efforts to explain to customers what the checks and restrictions they may face are.

“Currently, too many consumers are given the impression that any check they have to go through is linked to affordability. And while checking for financial risk is an important part of customer interaction for a small minority of customers, we know it is not the only reason customers are facing checks. So, if it’s your terms and conditions or AML [anti-money laundering], or for purely commercial reasons, then you should say so,” Rhodes added.

Abuse of terms and conditions, bonus abuse and potential identity fraud were then noted as upcoming topics of interest to the GC.

However, Rhodes did confirm there had been an “improved picture” on both compliance and top-line results in Britain’s gambling industry in the last few years.

For the first time, gross gambling yield (GGY) in Great Britain topped £15bn in the year to March 2023, a 6.6% uptick on what GGY was in the last pre-Covid stats that the GC recorded.

Rhodes explained: “That of course doesn’t allow for different factors the industry has to face and nor is it even growth. Online GGY has grown 13.3% in the same time frame. This versus a land-based sector that, while it has recovered, still sees participation down on pre-Covid times.”

The CEO also pointed out that return to player (RTP) rates had fallen, noting that operators had taken steps to keep profits up in challenging times, and that while aware of the situation, the GC were not taking an official position on it right now.

In his last AGM address before succeeding the outgoing Brigid Simmonds as chair, BGC chief exec Michael Dugher talked of the need to “stand up for our industry” following the publication of the government’s white paper into the Gambling Act 2005 review.

Addressing BGC members, Dugher, said: “Our mission, on behalf of millions of customers and tens of thousands of employees, is to stand up for our industry.

“Not merely to accept change or simply manage change. But to shape it, to influence it, to deliver it. This is a world-leading industry. We should be proud of it. And we will continue to fight for it.”

He continued: “Our success is your success. The challenges we face – and there are many  – we face them together. We have brought the industry together and together we have achieved great things.”

Stuart Andrew MP echoed this sentiment and praised BGC members’ contributions to the national economy: “I would like to again recognise this contribution, not just in revenue terms but also the social and entertainment benefits your businesses bring to millions of customers who enjoy gambling and suffer no harm at all.”

The AGM went on to discuss a number of proposals the BGC had recently campaigned for, including frictionless enhanced spending checks online, a mandatory levy to fund research, prevention and treatment (RET) to tackle problem gambling and gambling-related harm as well as the establishment of an ombudsman to improve consumer redress.