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UK Gambling Commission Under FireA recent report in British daily The Guardian has criticized recent changes in legislation to legalize gambling in the UK. The 2005 Gambling Act will come into act on September 1st. Under fire is the UK's Gambling Commission and the country's taxation rate which has made the country an unattractive home for online gambling companies. According to the report, the headcount at the Gambling Commission has almost doubled since the agency was first established. This is despite lukewarm interest in the market from online gambling firms and the decision made by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to cancel plans to introduce super-casinos. Both factors have severely reduced the workload and the responsibilities of the agency. The Guardian op ed went on to say that just fourteen online poker and casino operators have registered for UK licenses. The reason for the lack of interest is attributed to the UK's taxation rate of 15 percent on gross profits. “To be able to advertise in Britain, an operator merely needs to be within the European Economic Area, so, guess what, Malta is suddenly popular,” the article reads. “Tax rates in Malta have been cut to 2.5 percent; at the last count, 200 online gambling companies had applied for licenses there. The Gambling Commission's bureaucrats in Birmingham have been bypassed. The industry's view is that Britain might care to cut its tax rate to match Malta's. That ain't going to happen: it knows the headlines in the Daily Mail would be horrible. We have a mess.” Back to News Archive - September 2007 |
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