The U.K.’s Gambling Commission CEO Andrew Rhodes lashed out against critics of affordability checks for spreading “misinformation,” iGaming Business reported October 17.
The commission’s chief was addressing the International Association of Gambling Regulators (IAGR) and mentioned the proposal to do financial risk checks—without doubt the most controversial of the recommendations in the gambling reform white paper.
Rhodes said the misunderstanding derives from the complexity of the issues involved, but asserted that some of the criticism is pure “deliberate misinformation designed to muddy the waters of debate and to torpedo the implementation of government policy.”
The proposal is nearing the end of a consultation, with submissions invited on how it should operate. It has received more than 2,000 responses.
He also updated the group on the commission’s efforts to suppress the illegal market, whose risks he previously called “overstated.” Per iGB, he said, “While the illegal online market exists in Great Britain as it does elsewhere, it is not a significant concern and this position hasn’t fundamentally changed. However, that does not mean there is no illegal market or no risk.”
He explained how his agency worked with internet search and service providers to “de-list” illegal operators from search results and block their sites. It also pressured social media to remove posts promoting the sites.
He also worked with iGaming supplies to prevent black market operators from buying products.
Enforcement actions have risen 500 percent in the last couple of years, he declared.
During this summer, four of the top 10 illegal domains were restricted, with an accompanying 46 percent reduction in traffic.
However, they need to be constantly vigilant to prevent disrupted illegal sites from being reborn in new guises. “What may have worked one quarter may need refining the next. And that’s what we are committed to doing,” said Rhodes, per iGB.
