• Holland And Barrett Vitamins Gibraltar Offer

Jun 20 - Gibraltar Gaming Association Challenges UK Law to Open Gaming Market

gbgaThe Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association has challenged the UK Government, following the announcements of a new law that will open the UK gaming market, meaning that the Gambling Commission will have to police the online sector ‘on a worldwide basis’, which goes against the current scheme that sees British consumers gamble with a limited number of licensed operators.

Peter Howitt of the GBGA insists that this could ‘drive consumers to the unregulated or poorly regulated market’ leaving British consumers unprotected when they play with foreign operators.

Mr. Howitt yesterday noted that the new Act will allow operators from 165 new jurisdictions to gain licenses to operate in the UK. He added, ‘the Gambling Commission is supposed to regulate this industry with no extra-territorial information gathering or enforcement powers.  Clearly that spells a new danger for British consumers.’

The GBGA, which represents many of the huge operators based in Gibraltar, has written a letter to the UK Government, and the Gambling commission, challenging the new Act with claims that it ‘breaches Article 56 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and is unlawful.’

Dan Tench of the law firm Olswang noted that the act is neither reasonable nor proportionate ‘to achieving that goal and are likely to have adverse consequences for consumers.   All this Act achieves is a wholly unjustified, disproportionate and discriminatory interference with the right to free movement of services, a right enshrined in European Law.’

Gibraltar currently boasts one of the Worlds most highly regarded and thorough gambling regulatory system.