On February 12, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) called upon the U.K. government to crack down on illegal gambling operations conducting business within the country. This push comes as part of the new Online Harms Bill, which the BGC has been advocating for as a means to control unregulated operators who are not verifying the age of participants.
The primary concern for the BGC has been the effect that these operations may have on underaged users. Underage gambling is becoming a growing concern in the U.K., and the fact that these operators are lax in ID verification is seen as a gigantic risk.
The bill is expected to be introduced in the House of Commons within the next week and provides new regulations that protect children and also stop the spread of terrorist materials. This bill was first announced during the Queen’s Speech and was set as a primary agenda item for the governing Conservative Party.
A recent study conducted by the BGC found that four out of every 10 search results for gambling-related terms resulted in links to an internationally licensed online gambling site. The research was based upon 47 search terms and resulted in 8,825 organic search results. It was found that 78% related to gambling operators. However, when duplicate results were removed, the search was able to identify 229 operators not holding a UK license.
In addition, their study concluded that these non-UK licensees have secured over 27 million visits from IP addresses registered in the U.K.. That led to an estimate of 200,000 players in the U.K. who engaged with these sites over the past 12 months, wagering an estimated £1.4 billion ($1.82 billion) in stakes.
In a statement provided by Michael Dugher, the chief executive of the BGC, he explained that “Search platforms are promoting black-market gambling operators for profit, putting the British consumers, including children, at risk. None of the U.K.’s strict licensed safeguards are in place on these illegal sites.”
Dughar pointed out that UK-licensed gambling businesses have taken a zero-tolerance approach to any underage gamblers. Dughar claimed that this is not always the case with these international operators, who may skirt rules to allow players of all ages to join.
“We welcome the Government’s Online Harms Bill. But it also provides the Government with a chance to clamp down on the black market and help protect punters who want a flutter in a safe environment,” the CEO added.
