Cross-party thinktank calls for monthly £100 affordability limit on UK players
Social Market Foundation report also recommends penalising firms for operating from overseas tax territories
UK gamblers who fail strict affordability checks should be limited to £100 a month, according to a new report from cross-party thinktank, the Social Market Foundation (SMF).
The report claims a “socially acceptable” affordability limit for the lowest income households is approximately £23 per week, or £100 a month.
It suggests any bettor staking above the £100 limit should provide financial evidence to prove they can afford to exceed the limit through source of wealth checks.
The data would be held by gambling operators and passed on to an ombudsman, which would then implement the limits across all companies to stop players circumventing the system.
All players would be assessed according to minimum income standards implemented by the UK government, recommends the report.
The study, authored by Dr James Noyes, a former advisor to Labour MP Tom Watson, suggests it is “inevitable that gamblers will sometimes spend more than they can afford” and that unambiguous spending thresholds are required.
It examines five areas; gambling licensing, content, affordability, tax and the regulatory framework for gambling. The report calls for a wholesale reform of the sector, including the introduction of a so-called “onshore footprint”, measuring operators across their capital, human, social, legal and digital presence in the UK.
According to SMF, smaller footprint operators (those operating offshore/overseas) would face higher levels of remote gaming and betting duties as a way of rewarding companies that operate from Britain, while increasing the cost of operating offshore.
A review of existing taxation of operators is also included among the recommendations made.
“Gambling taxation should be redesigned around a system of incentives which reflect a company’s level of onshore presence,” the SMF said.
“This means that operators could still decide to base their headquarters in locations like Gibraltar, the Isle of Man or Alderney, but that decision would carry significant tax implications,” the SMF said.
Similar to calls made in several other reports into the UK gambling industry, the report calls for a £1-£5 limit on online slots games as a way of curbing the alleged addictiveness of the vertical.
In tandem with recent Gambling Commission thinking, the report suggests other forms of online gambling should face restrictions on game design rather than financial limits.
It proposes a mandatory kitemark system for all licensed operators, as well as an end to white-label operations in the UK, with all existing white-label operators made to apply for UK licences subject to suitability.
In addition, the report echoes similar comments made in other industry review reports claiming that current regulatory authorities are “not fit for purpose” and calls for greater transparency over the UKGC’s sanctioning methods.
As an alternative, the SMF suggests responsibility for gambling regulation in the UK be removed from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and split between an industry ombudsman and a separate licensing body.
The twin bodies would form part of a new UK government ‘Gambling Quartet’ consisting of:
A new Gambling Licensing Authority (to replace the Gambling Commission) under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Justice;
A new Gambling Ombudsman under the sponsorship of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy;
The NHS and UK Research Councils should be funding and commissioning of research education and training on gambling, via a statutory levy, under the sponsorship of the Department of Health and Social Care;
Oversight of advertising, the lottery, and sporting and cultural events relating to gambling should remain under the sponsorship of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
Noyes cited the forthcoming review of the 2005 Gambling Act as an “opportunity for a radical overhaul” to address the evolution of the industry over the last 20 years.
On incentivising operators to work from the UK, he said: “The message to online gambling operators should be clear: if you want to benefit from the British market, then make a commitment to being based in Britain.”