Seven new commissioners have joined the U.K. Gambling Commission (UKGC). The new members will join four existing commissioners serving under Chairman Marcus Boyle.
The regulator oversees gambling in England and Wales. In a statement, it said the new additions “bring experience and knowledge from a wide range of sectors to help us ensure gambling is fair and safe… (and) help us to ensure we meet our licensing objectives.”
Charles Counsell, Helen Dodds, Sheree Howard and Claudia Mortimore each will serve five-year terms. Lloydette Bai-Marrow, Helen Philips and David Rossington will serve four-year terms.
Counsell is the former chief executive of the Pensions Regulator, a position he held from April 2019 to March 2023. During his administration, according to iGaming Business, he was responsible for introducing the regulator’s first equality, diversity and inclusion policy and its first climate change strategies.
Dodds was described as an international lawyer, consultant and board member. Howard is currently the executive director of risk and compliance oversight at the Financial Conduct Authority. Mortimore has 10 years of experience in the enforcement division of the Financial Reporting Council.
Bai-Marrow is a lawyer, anti-corruption expert and founding partner of Parametric Global Consulting, an financial crime investigations consultancy. She is also chairwoman of the board of Spotlight on Corruption and a co-founder and director of the Black Women in Leadership network (BWIL).
Phillips has had a wide-ranging career in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. She is currently chairwoman of NHS Professionals Ltd. and also serves as chair of the Chartered Insurance Institute.
Rossington is a former civil servant and former acting director-general at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The stated mission of the UKGC is to “raise standards in the gambling industry, protect children and the vulnerable, and keep crime out of gambling.”
The UKGC is currently inviting feedback from gaming industry stakeholders on government proposals to introduce maximum stake limits for online slots, among other changes.
According to SBC News, the Gambling Act Review White Paper, published in April, listed a number of recommendations for the U.K. betting sector.
U.K. Gambling Minister Stuart Andrew said the goal of the White Paper is to update “our decades old gambling laws to make them fit for the smartphone era.”
Among other areas, the UKGC will focus on financial risk and vulnerability and strengthening age verification. Tim Miller, the commission’s executive director for research and policy, said last spring, “These consultations offer the opportunity for people to have their say on proposals aimed at empowering and protecting consumers.
“Many of these proposals have already had a significant amount of engagement and scrutiny, and the government’s White Paper sets out the policy positions.
“We are pleased to now focus consultation and engagement on the detail of how such protections and controls can be implemented in practice.”
Proposals to reduce the “speed and intensity of online products” including slot games will also be reviewed. The UKGC itself will also be scrutinized, with the composition and decision-making powers of its regulatory panels to be evaluated.
“We want to protect people from harm while making sure everyone who loves a flutter can continue to do so enjoyably,” Andrew said. “These consultations give people a chance to have their say and I encourage everyone to make their voice heard.”
Meanwhile, the UKGC just released its second-quarter report, including data from land-based and online operators. The online gross gaming yield (GGY) totaled £1.2 billion (US$1.46 billion), a 0.6 percent year-on-year increase, driven by slots. GGY for most other verticals decreased, reports Yogonet Gaming News.
Total bets and spins were up 10 percent, and average monthly active accounts increased 7 percent year-on-year. GGY from slots rose 8 percent for a total of £589 million (US$712.7 million).
GGY from licensed offline betting operators dropped 0.4 percent to £539 million (US$652.2 million) for the quarter, while the total bets and spins decreased by 1 percent to 3.1 billion.
Over-the-counter bets dropped 1 percent year-on-year in Q2 to 142 million. The GGY for the vertical was reduced by 0.1 percent to £166 million (US$200.8 million). And bets on self-serve betting terminals rose by 20 percent year-on-year to 31.5 million, with GGY down 1 percent to £93 million (US$112.5 million).
Machine GGY was down 0.4 percent to £280 million (US$338.7 million) with 128 average spins per session and an average spend per session of £12.09.
