Anne Lambert (CMG) stands as interim Chair of HBLB

The government has appointed Anne Lambert (CMG) as Interim Chair of the Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB).

The temporary appointment follows the death of HBLB Chairman Paul Darling, who passed away in August following a barristers’ meeting at Middle Temple.

Lambert has previously served as Panel Chair and a Non-Executive Director of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), overseeing inquiries since 1 October 2016.

Prior to her work at the CMA, Lambert worked for the UK Government for 30 years, focusing on regulation (insurance, telecommunications, competition, and aviation) and EU policy/negotiations.

Notably, Lambert served as the UK’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the EU from 2003-2008.

Lambert takes on the role as an ‘exceptional appointment’ by the Secretary of State as the government aims to appoint a “substantive Chair to the Horserace Betting Levy Board.”

Lambert has served as an independent member of the Horserace Betting Levy Board since 1 April 2020.

The HBLB is a public body under the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) tasked with collecting annual levy payments from British licensed betting and gaming companies and directing this funding into the horse racing sector.

Horse racing is heavily dependent on the betting levy for income, alongside media rights payments and sponsorship activities, the latter also involving commercial arrangements with betting operators.

The betting levy stood at £90m in 2021/22, £100m in 2022/23, and £105m in 2023/24, marking a steady improvement against the difficulties of the COVID-19 era. The 2019/20 and 2020/21 cycles saw levy payments drop due to the suspension of horse racing under lockdown conditions, and the subsequent fall in betting volume on the sport.

The Conservative government excluded the renegotiation of UK racing’s levy from the Gambling Review’s White Paper.

The levy is set to be reviewed once the White Paper’s outstanding regulatory matters are settled, during which UK gambling terms will be negotiated by the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC).