UK Lottery CEO Nigel Railton drew disbelief from the British Parliament after telling MPs that the lottery will not be able to enact a ban on sales of lottery products to people under 18 for at least a year.
Speaking at recent All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPG) session, Railton said there are a series of “logistical challenges” to enforce a ban.
“Nothing we can do is overnight,” he said. “We just can’t do things overnight. It’s not a small task, it’s going to cost about £6 million to do it. And it’s not the money, it’s just we’re in the middle of this COVID crisis. We’ve got a lot of priorities, this is one of them, and the sooner we get clarity, the sooner we’ll get on with it.”
The UK government is considering legislation to raise the age limit for all lottery products. The ban was recommended by the government’s recent review of gambling. The change, which will likely happen in 2023, could be implemented when the lottery license comes up for renewal, according to SBC News.
Railton told MPs that up to 12 months would be needed to put in such a ban as changing the signs in shops and newsagents would be a time-consuming process. He did say the lottery was trying to find ways to speed up the process.
MPs, however, reportedly dismissed Railton’s concerns as “wholly unacceptable” and “farcical.”
Conservative MP Richard Holden told the Telegraph: “It’s farcical to suggest that it would take 12 months to replace a few sticky signs in shops. It’s just another way for Camelot to drag their feet over children gambling.”
A report by the House of Lords Gambling Select Committee in July called for “urgent action” to address harms caused by gambling including raising the minimum age for lotteries to 18. The UK lottery has drawn sharp criticism after several reports found underage children were spending millions on lottery products.
Camelot, which runs the lottery, however says it supports any future ban.
A spokesman said: “The National Lottery is a vast and complex operation, with a network of 44,000 retailers across the UK,” a spokesman said in a press release. “While any changeover will not happen overnight, we will do everything in our power to bring it in as quickly as possible, while ensuring that we maintain the very high operational standards demanded of the National Lottery. However, it’s not simply a case of sending new stickers to retailers – under our license to operate the National Lottery, the current 16+ sign must appear on all physical materials, as well as in all online channels.”
