Comment: In defence of self-exclusion

Earlier in the week eGaming Review reported that the Gambling Commission’s plans for a national self-exclusion scheme for online gamblers had come under fire from people in the industry. In the light of that I thought it might be helpful to provide background on the issues that have been raised and to explain something about the role that industry representatives have been playing in the development of the proposals.

At the outset it is important to recognise that this initiative began not with the Gambling Commission, but rather in Parliament during the passage of the Gambling (Licensing & Advertising) Act 2014. Irrespective of whether it was universally welcomed or not, the Government gave a commitment that a national system would be introduced. In those circumstances the RGA advocated that such a system could only be run properly by the regulator.

It then fell to the Gambling Commission to put Parliament’s wishes into practice. To its credit one of the first actions it took was to create a joint working group with industry representatives to consider the options and bring forward detailed proposals. Apart from the RGA, the companies represented on that group are bet365, Betfair, Paddy Power, Sky Betting & Gaming and William Hill. Gala Coral has also recently been invited to sense check the group’s work.

In due course, the Gambling Commission will consult on the detailed proposals for such a scheme and then everyone will of course have the opportunity to comment.

It is perfectly understandable that in a diverse industry such as ours that differing views will be held and I can’t guarantee that the final proposals will meet everyone’s concerns, but it does seem premature for anyone to be overly critical until they have seen what they are. Given the huge amount of effort that has already gone into it I would, for instance, challenge any suggestion that they have not been thoroughly thought through.

There is a risk that players who self-exclude will move to unlicensed operators in order to work around the exclusion. The onus is on the Commission to crackdown on black market operators to minimise that risk, but experience tells us that determined gamblers will find ways around even the best controls. No system is perfect and there will be breaches, probably with licensed as well as unlicensed operators, however it will still be a major improvement on the present arrangements.

Players will continue to have the option to self-exclude from individual companies if they wish to. The national system is for those who want to adopt a blanket ban. The ultimate responsibility for making that choice and adhering to it must rest with the customer. Similarly, companies can continue if they wish, as now, to provide exclusion by product. There are no plans for that facility to be available under the national scheme.

Self-exclusion is a tool that is provided to customers to help them manage their gambling. It is not solely the preserve of problem gamblers. Discussions have already been instigated with Camelot to move us to a position where their online customers would also be covered by this scheme. It would be extremely surprising and disappointing if the users of online National Lottery products did not end up being given access to the same facilities as all other online players.

In any event, a scheme in some form will be introduced at some point. That will happen irrespective of whether the concept is supported by everyone, which we have to accept will never be the case. The only practical approach then is to work with the Commission to ensure that the system is as effective as it can be for operators and customers alike.

There is also a shared objective in ensuring that we minimise the burden on operators and identify a system that provides value for money. The wider industry will only be able to take an informed view about how successful the proposals are likely to be in achieving that once they have seen them. In the meantime if I can help to reassure any eGR readers about the process then they are welcome to contact me at chawkswood@rga.eu.com.