Tag Archives: Tom Watson

David Clifton: Licensing Expert – UK stakeholders point towards ‘Safety First’ approach on player protections

SBC News David Clifton: Licensing Expert – UK stakeholders point towards 'Safety First' approach on player protections

Last week, I chaired an excellent gambling conference on the subject of “Player Protection”. The event was attended by a broad cross-section of stakeholders – licensed B2C operators (both land-based and remote and from different sectors of the industry), B2B gambling software and age/identity verification providers, gambling industry lawyers and consultants, gambling-related harm treatment providers, experts in gambling blocking and …

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Tom Watson demands thorough review into online casino licence holders

SBC News Tom Watson demands thorough review into online casino licence holders

The UK Labour Party has emphasised that online casinos which received licences after 2014 should have to reapply for operating licences after it was found by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) that over one third of operators were asked to improve their standards. The party’s deputy leader, Tom Watson, has penned a letter to both the UKGC CEO Neil McArthur and Jeremy …

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Winning Post: Retail Games… a crime or a mistake?

SBC News Winning Post: Retail Games... a crime or a mistake?

Regulus Partners dissects a new era for UK retail betting incumbents which has begun with a very predictable opening chapter as Betfred and Paddy Power face scrutiny for circumventing gaming machine laws… This week saw the implementation of GB’s B2 ban and the rollout of some operator mitigation plans. Betfred and Paddy Power launched OTC products which used Virtual betting …

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David Clifton: Licensing Expert – Pondering some opposites on either side of the pond

SBC News David Clifton: Licensing Expert - Pondering some opposites on either side of the pond

News from either side of the Atlantic Ocean within the last month shows a yawning gap between the UK on the one hand and the U.S. on the other, not only in terms of social responsibility and player protection requirements but also in relation to attitudes towards gambling generally. I am not for one moment suggesting that responsible gambling is not a matter of …

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Winning Post: Betting absorbs a bumper week of UK funny games

SBC News Winning Post: Betting absorbs a bumper week of UK funny games

Industry strategic consultancy Regulus Partners reviews a week of UK parliamentary debate on the future of betting/gambling’s regulatory structure,  which appears to be turning into a game of political manoeuvring and posturing… _______________ UK: Regulation – Labour speaks softly but carries a big stick UK gambling operators awoke yesterday to the sight of two senior parliamentarians striding towards them, wielding big …

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RSPH – New Gambling Health Alliance will support Watson’s tougher code

SBC News RSPH - New Gambling Health Alliance will support Watson's tougher code

Labour Deputy leader Tom Watson’s call for a tougher regulatory code on online gambling services/practices has received the backing of the Royal Society of Public Health (RSPH). In 2019, the RSPH is set to launch its ‘Gambling Health Alliance’, developed in partnership with industry charity GambleAware, as UK-wide gambling policy advisors push for problem-gambling to be treated as a public …

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RGA warns Watson over online slots stake and prize restrictions

SBC News RGA warns Watson over online slots stake and prize restrictions

The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) has warned Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson that his party’s recommendations to introduce curbs on stake, spend and game speed for online gambling could send players to illegal offshore sites. Watson will today make a call for a new Gambling Act with the introduction of a new ‘Category E‘ designation to sit alongside the Categories …

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Labour wants greater curbs for online gambling in a new Gambling Act

SBC News Labour wants greater curbs for online gambling in a new Gambling Act

Labour Party deputy leader Tom Watson is to call for greater restrictions on online gambling in order to align the sector more closely with land-based gambling rules. At an IPPR policy seminar later today, Watson will call for the introduction of limits to spend, to stake and to speed in online gambling and the introduction of a new ‘E Category’ …

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UK policy stakeholders welcome the IGRG’s ‘stronger code’ for 2019

SBC News UK policy stakeholders welcome the IGRG’s ‘stronger code’ for 2019

UK regulatory and policy stakeholders have publicly backed yesterday’s confirmation by the Industry Group for Responsible Gambling (‘IGRG’) to implement a whistle-to-whistle ban on betting advertising during live TV sports programming. In 2019, the IGRG – a collective body of industry operators and trade associations – will re-establish a new code for betting advertising practices, helping the UK Advertising Standards Authority …

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Winning Post – Industry feels impact of parliament turbulence

SBC News Winning Post - Industry feels impact of parliament turbulence

Regulus Partners, the strategic consultancy focused on international gambling and related industries, takes a look at some key developments for the gambling industry in its ‘Winning Post’ column. UK: Politics – What did you do during the Brexit? The folly of the British gambling lobby was laid painfully bare in Westminster this week. Against the backdrop of the United Kingdom’s …

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