Malta Gaming Authority hits back at Bill 55 backlash
Maltese regulator responds to criticism of amendment by both media outlets and other European regulators
The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has hit back at criticism levelled at the island nation for its controversial Bill 55 amendment to its Gaming Act.
Earlier this week, Germany’s gambling regulator, Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), suggested Bill 55 is incompatible with European law.
Bill 55 is currently being studied by the European Commission to establish its compatibility with existing regulations.
Moving to provide “clarity, accuracy and transparency” around Bill 55, the MGA released a statement in an attempt to quash attempts to paint the amendment as an affront to European law.
In its statement, the regulator said the legislator’s intention was to “enshrine into law the long-standing public policy of Malta in relation to the gaming sector.”
The MGA added that the law doesn’t create additional or separate grounds for refusing to recognise judgements made under European Union regulation. The MGA said it was simply an interpretation of the order public grounds for refusal, outlined in existing European regulations.
The MGA said: “The scope of the amendments enacted into law is highly restricted, and the law does not preclude any action whatsoever from being taken against a licensee. Therefore, not every judgment relating to the operations of gaming operators with a Maltese licence would be in violation of Maltese public policy.
“The provisions shall only be applicable when the action – taken by an operator against a player, or a player against an operator – conflicts with or undermines the legality of the Maltese framework, and is related to activity which is lawful in terms of the Gaming Act and the other regulatory instruments applicable to the Malta Gaming Authority’s licensees.”
In effect, Bill 55 prevents legal action being brought against Malta-licenced firms should the alleged offence be legal under Maltese law.
In its closing remarks, the MGA reaffirmed its position that Bill 55 conformed with EU law.
The regulator added: “The Maltese gaming framework, in turn, is in full conformity with EU law and is based on the freedoms afforded to an entity established within the internal market.”