The Gambling Commission’s focus on the responsible design of gambling incentives like bonuses and free bets is set to be a key topic in the UK’s upcoming round of Gambling Act white paper consultations. This announcement was made by Mandy Gill, the Commission’s director of compliance, during a recent address to the British Amusement Catering Trade Association (BACTA) Social Responsibility Exchange.
Industry Engagement and Consultations
Gill highlighted that the new consultations would seek industry input on crafting socially responsible gambling incentives. Discussions will also cover the potential implementation of mandatory online deposit limits and the revision of regulatory return practices. With an emphasis on making gambling safer and maintaining fairness and legality, Gill encouraged continued cooperation and feedback from the industry.
Specific Measures and Industry Impacts
The consultations are not just limited to online practices but also touch on land-based gambling operations. While financial vulnerability checks will not extend to land-based venues, there are proposals for improving marketing preferences across all gambling platforms. Additionally, there’s a push to update age verification methods in physical gambling locations, possibly increasing the age for staff challenges from 21 to 25, aligning it with regulations for other regulated products like tobacco and alcohol.
Gill also mentioned the Commission’s review of Gaming Machine Technical Standards, which will consider session limits and safer gambling measures in Category B and C machines. This includes input from BACTA’s ‘Responsible Game Design Code of Conduct’.
During the last round of consultations, which received over 3,000 responses, topics like financial risk assessments, cross-selling, and direct marketing in non-slots casino games, and age verification in premises were deliberated.
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