Gambling Commission recruits new interim CEO

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has appointed Andrew Rhodes as its new interim CEO. A veteran of both the public and private sector, Rhodes will join the regulator later in June before serving a fixed 18-month term as interim chief exec. The UKGC said Rhodes had been chosen following a thorough search and highly competitive recruitment process, which kicked off in April following the sudden departure of Neil McArthur. He will be based at the UKGC’s headquarters in Birmingham and will receive a salary of up to £150,000 per annum. While advertising the interim CEO role, the UKGC said the successful applicant would join the regulator at an important time amid the UK government’s Gambling Act 2005 review and warned it would be a “highly visible, scrutinised role”. Rhodes most recently served as registrar and COO at Swansea University for three years since April 2018. He also spent two years as director general of operations for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), having previously served as a benefit services director at the government department. Rhodes also spent more than four years as COO of the Food Standards Agency.

He takes over the responsibilities previously covered by UKGC deputy CEO Sarah Gardner and COO Sally Jones, who had been joint acting heads of the regulator since McArthur left in March. In a LinkedIn post, Rhodes said there was a “tremendous amount to do” in his new role. In a statement, he added: “The Gambling Commission is one of the world’s highest profile and most respected regulators so I am delighted to join the team at such an important time. “Protecting the public and players from gambling harm will continue to be central to our work and I am looking forward to meeting people from across the industry and those with lived experience to understand the issues and opportunities which lay ahead. “This is a great time to have the opportunity to work in gambling regulation. The government’s Gambling Act 2005 review represents a fantastic opportunity to deliver real and sustained improvements in the way gambling is provided and regulated. “As the regulator we have a unique and important role to play at the forefront of that change,” Rhodes added. The UKGC is currently dealing with challenges including the forthcoming review, which could see the regulator stripped of some regulatory powers or replaced by a new entity. The regulator is also dealing with the fallout from the collapse of the Football Index business, which has seen questions asked of the UKGC’s regulatory role in the firm’s demise. Earlier this month, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) commissioned lawyer Malcolm Sheehan QC to lead an independent review into the BetIndex business, which includes detailed scrutiny of UKGC practices and its dealings with other stakeholders during the periods both before and after its collapse. Sheehan will deliver his report later in the summer.