UK Gambling Commission pocketed lottery ticket sales worth almost £155m
The regulator awarded itself funds to cover running costs that amounted to £50m more than was originally budgeted
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) took £155m from National Lottery ticket sales, which it has said was to cover regulatory costs for the next 10 years, a report by the Mail on Sunday has revealed.
It was reported that this amounted to £50m more than was budgeted for – money that had been set aside for community projects and charities.
CEO of the UKGC, Andrew Rhodes, admitted that the money was to be used to pay for the recent bidding process for the fourth operating licence to run the National Lottery, which has recently been awarded to Allwyn.
The newspaper revealed that Parliamentary All-Party Betting & Gaming Group vice-chairman Sir Iain Duncan Smith lambasted the UKGC for taking the extra money, stating: “This is another example of the appalling way the lottery is run. The proportion of funds going to good causes has plummeted.”
Rhodes explained the reasons for taking this extra money in a letter to Dame Meg Hillier, who chairs the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee.
Rhodes revealed that the costs to license and regulate the National Lottery had ballooned to £154.8m, which was over £50m more than the initial £102.9m budget in 2019.
Rhodes explained that this sum had been drawn from the funds intended for charity, but it only accounted for 0.7% of the £14.5bn saved for good causes.
A UKGC spokesperson said: “We have made every effort to keep costs low while ensuring that we fulfil our statutory duties and deliver the best possible outcome for the National Lottery.
“Whole life costs of the programme, which includes both running the fourth National Lottery licence competition and subsequently regulating the fourth licence over the 10 years of its duration, are currently forecast to be £154.9m, which, against the overall forecasted value of the licence of £80bn, represents a reasonable investment in ensuring we appoint the best applicant to fulfil the statutory duties and maximise returns for good causes.”
Following the award of the next 10-year lottery licence to Allwyn, current licence holder Camelot has launched a High Court battle to try and overturn the UKGC’s licence decision.
Italian lottery operator Sisal is reportedly deliberating whether or not to join Camelot in the High Court battle.
The Flutter-owned firm reportedly came third in the bidding process and is deciding whether or not it is worth joining forces with Camelot after the operator lost the right to operate the National Lottery from 2024, having done so since the lottery’s inception in 1994.