UKGC names new chair amid gambling act review
Qualified accountant Marcus Boyle selected by Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden from four-person shortlist
Former Deloitte board member and chief operating officer Marcus Boyle has been appointed as the new chair of the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) for a five-year term.
Boyle’s appointment was confirmed by UK Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden.
He will now replace Bill Moyes, who confirmed his departure date in April following the high-profile and sudden exit of CEO Neil McArthur.
In August, it was revealed the UKGC had settled on a four-person shortlist to replace the outgoing Moyes, who was first appointed in 2017.
In landing the role, Boyle has seen off competition from Conservative peer and safer gambling campaigner Lord Chadlington, Responsible Gambling Strategy Board chair Anna van der Gaag and a fourth unnamed candidate.
Boyle, a qualified accountant, will assume the position of chair from 5 September to 4 September 2026 and will be paid £55,000 per annum, the same salary that Moyes received.
Commenting on Boyle’s appointment at the Birmingham-based regulator, Dowden said it was an “important moment” for the UKGC during the current government review of the Gambling Act 2005.
He said: “New leadership will bring a new direction and focus for the Commission and I very much look forward to working with Marcus.
“His expertise will be invaluable as he steers the Commission into a new era of gambling regulation fit for the digital age,” he added.
While at Deloitte, Boyle served as board member, chief strategy officer and chief operating officer before resigning in November 2020.
He joins the UKGC at a time of mounting criticism over the regulator’s role in the spectacular collapse of Football Index.
The government plans to publish a white paper on the gambling review before the end of the year.