Gambling white paper review rush the plans for football reform

The leadership of both British racing and the betting industry are desperate for clarity on the government's proposals for gambling reform, especially over the issue of affordability checks which the sport estimates is already costing it tens of millions of pounds in revenue.

The government's gambling review was launched in December 2020 with the promise of making regulation "fit for the digital age" but it has been the subject of repeated delays ever since.

This month prime minister Rishi Sunak carried out a mini-reshuffle which resulted in the then culture secretary Michelle Donelan and Paul Scully, the minister for gambling, leaving their posts at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Lucy Frazer has taken over at the head of the now slimmed-down DCMS, while sports minister Stuart Andrew is set to take on the gambling brief from Scully.

Andrew has not been officially named as gambling minister but this week he responded to written parliamentary questions on gambling policy, saying in the replies that the government "will publish a white paper in the coming weeks". 

However, in answer to a question from Andrew Bridgen MP which asked who would be responsible for the white paper, Andrew replied on Thursday: "The minister responsible for gambling will be announced soon."

It is understood that the 'write-round' process, in which other government departments are informed of policy and are able to give feedback, has yet to begin, which could mean the white paper will not be published until the second half of March at the earliest.

Should the Easter recess deadline of March 30 be missed it could also mean that the white paper does not appear until May, as further delays might result from the period of pre-election sensitivity also known as 'purdah' before the local elections in England on May 4, during which time policy announcements are not supposed to be made. Once the government's proposals on affordability checks are laid out in the white paper, it is expected the topic will be subject to a further period of consultation.

Among the other issues likely to figure in the gambling review are gambling advertising and sports sponsorship by gambling operators. 

It has been reported this week the government is unlikely to propose banning gambling sponsorship but Premier League football clubs could bring in a voluntary ban.

A statutory levy on gambling operators to pay for the treatment of problem gambling, and lower stakes for online slot games to match those found in land-based gambling, are also expected to figure.

By Bill Barber