Has the Government Gone Soft on Gambling Reform?

The UK’s current Gambling Act was introduced and implemented by a Labour Government back in 2005. It is highly regarded as a landmark piece of legislation that has been used as a template for many global, regulated markets. However, while it regulated online gambling, it dates from a time predating smart devices.

Therefore, the online casinos it set out to regulate were very different from those most people can now access from just about anywhere via their mobile phones. There are some superb operators out there, but there are also some that do not always have their customers’ best interests at heart. Fortunately, gamblers have been helped to navigate what is on offer with review sites like Casino.org, which have decades of experience guiding players to the best sites and actively steering them away from harmful ones.

However, while independent review sites help keep most people safe, for years, people had been calling for changes to gambling regulations, claiming they were ‘no longer fit for purpose’ due to the industry innovations. Problem gambling affects around 300,000 people and can lead to gamblers losing life-changing amounts of money. While the vast majority can gamble without facing these kinds of problems, there was no doubt that changes would help protect the most vulnerable.

However, unsurprisingly, there was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing and considerable delays under the Conservative governments (in all their various guises). It seemed at times as though nothing would change and there was a good deal of discussion regarding the influence the gambling industry had over legislators.

In 2023, Scott Benton MP was infamously caught on camera advising undercover reporters posing as gambling industry investors about how they could win favour with MPs by undervaluing hospitality packages offered, meaning that MPs do not have to declare them. He was also filmed saying he could table parliamentary questions on behalf of the industry. As MPs had officially accepted at least £225,000 from gambling companies in 2021, the lobby’s influence is not insignificant.

Many people believed that the government dragging its feet on bringing in reforms was directly linked to industry lobbying. However, a white paper was finally introduced, but then along came the General Election and a changing of the guard. As Labour seemed to have as many, if different, ties to the industry, there was a real fear that the proposed changes would get left behind and nothing would change.

However, Labour has committed to enforcing changes and does not appear to have gone soft despite well-publicised links to the gambling industry. Despite the government rejecting a proposal to double remote gaming duty, bookmakers and casinos will be mandated to pay an annual levy to fund research, treatment of gambling harms and education.

It is a rubber-stamping of the previous government’s proposal to abolish the voluntary system that lets the industry choose how much it will donate to tackle gambling harms. Under the current system, the industry also gets to choose which organisations receive the funding.

The levy, introduced by gambling minister Baroness Twycross, is expected to take effect from April. Gambling Commission figures indicate that this would raise £109 million. The government has promised a formal review of its efficacy within five years by 2030.

The levy is not the only change that is taking place. Online slot stake limits are also set to change. In a Parliamentary speech, Baroness Twycross said,

“Online slots are the highest-risk gambling product. They have the highest rate of binge play and the highest average losses of any online product, and are associated with long playing sessions and high levels of use by people experiencing gambling harm.”

“Online slots are also the fastest-growing gambling product. In the past five years, this yield has grown by 61% and growth is not slowing down. However, there are currently no statutory stake limits for online slot games, unlike their land-based counterparts. As the popularity of slots grows, so does the risk for vulnerable people. Now is the time to act and stem the growing tide of unaffordable losses for people most at risk of gambling harm.”

The government has designed stake limits to target gamblers who are at the most risk of harm while ensuring the impact on operators is proportionate. After all, the government does not want to kill the golden goose that brings in much-needed revenue to the Treasury. What they are trying to do is balance between protecting the vulnerable and allowing the market to thrive.

Stake limits will be age-dependent. The online slot stake limit will be set at £5 for over-25s and £2 for those in the 18-24 age bracket. The government believes lowering the stake limit for younger people is a necessary intervention. They claim their research has shown younger people may be at an elevated risk of gambling harm. It was reported that the Betting and Gaming Council had welcomed the decision to introduce stake limits.

The changes will not be immediate, and there will be a transitional period to allow the gambling operators enough time to implement the changes. It should not be too onerous on them, as they already have to carry out age and identity checks, but the software will have to be updated for the stake limits to be enforced.

If you feel that this all has a Groundhog Day sense about it, it is because it is not new. The previous Tory government announced slot stake limits this time last year. It pledged to introduce them by September but was not in power, meaning the date passed, and nothing happened.

The Labour government have doubled down on the proposal and cited research from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities and the Gambling Survey for Great Britain in favour of imposing the stake limits.

“We are helping protect those at risk, with a particular focus on young adults, by introducing stake limits for online slots,” Baroness Twycross said. “These measures will help build an NHS fit for our future and strengthen protections while also allowing people to continue to gamble safely.”

Far from going soft, the government are promising robust oversight to ensure the funding from the levy gets to where it is most needed. They claim that the regulations represent the beginning of a new phase and describe the levy as a crucial first step.