National Lottery transition suspension lifted in victory for UKGC and Allwyn
High Court agrees to lift restrictions on licence transition from Camelot to Allwyn as October court date looms
The High Court has lifted the suspension on Allwyn’s proposed ascension to become the fourth National Lottery licence holder in a welcome victory for the UK Gambling Commission.
The suspension was implemented on the transition following the legal challenge launched against the UKGC by incumbent licence holder Camelot, its tech provider IGT and fellow licence challenger Northern & Shell.
However, the High Court has now revoked the suspension, allowing the UKGC to being the work of formally awarding the licence to Allwyn.
Allwyn was named the preferred candidate by the UKGC in March to become the licence holder in 2024 but was quickly challenged by Camelot.
At the High Court in May, Camelot claimed its UK branch would cease to exist, putting its employees and revenue at risk, should Allwyn be awarded the licence.
The case is set to resume in October 2022, although the procedure for licence transition should be under way by this point.
Touching on the decision by the High Court to lift the suspension, the UKGC said it was focused on benefiting customers and good causes with a “seamless” transition.
The UKGC said: “We made clear that disrupting the implementation of Allwyn’s plans would present potentially severe consequences for the National Lottery and good causes. It also risked the National Lottery not operating to its full potential at the start of the fourth licence.
“Our priority is to continue to work to implement our decision and ensure a seamless and timely transition to the next licence, for the benefit of participants and good causes.”
The regulator also touched on the upcoming trial, which is still scheduled to go ahead despite the lifting of the suspension.
The UKGC said: “We will also now be preparing for trial of the various claims. We remain resolute that we have run a fair and robust competition, and that our evaluation has been carried out fairly and lawfully in accordance with our statutory duties.
“We have taken every step possible to ensure a level playing field for all interested parties, to enable us to appoint a licensee who will engage and protect players, run the National Lottery with integrity and ensure the National Lottery maximises support for good causes and its contribution to society through further innovation and investment.”