Belgium claims EU overreached its authority
The government of Belgium has lost its plea to annul a set of measures that would protect online gamblers including minors, according to Casino News Daily.
The recommendations were introduced by the European Commission in 2014. Belgium argued that each member state has the right to regulate its own online gaming market and establish its own consumer protections. Belgian lawmakers said the European Commission had overstepped its authority by issuing the guidelines.
The EU Court of Justice rejected that assertion and upheld a previously issued decision by the General Court, which dismissed Belgium’s case in the fall of 2015.
The Belgian government has now exhausted its appeals. In its ruling, the CJEU said “the General Court was able properly to conclude that the recommendation does not have and is not intended to have binding legal effects, with the result that it cannot be classified as a challengeable act.”
