Gambling Commission Takes £155m in Lottery Money
According to press reports, the UK regulator took £155m from National Lottery ticket sales meant for charities. The UKGC took the funds to cover lottery regulation for the next decade and to pay for the recent lottery franchise tendering process.
CEO Admits Taking Lottery Money © Unsplash.
According To Reports In The Mail On Sunday, the UK gambling regulator took almost £155m from National Lottery ticket sales, a figure that is £50m higher than the regulator budgeted for, which should have been destined for charities and good causes.
The Gambling Commission’s CEO, Andrew Rhodes, admitted that the money would be used to pay for the recent National Lottery tender process, which, pending a legal challenge by the incumbent operator Camelot, will be awarded to Allwyn. The funds will also cover the regulator’s costs for the next ten years.
News of the regulator’s cash grab sparked outrage among campaigners, including Parliamentary All-Party Betting & Gaming Group vice-chairman Sir Iain Duncan Smith. The former Conservative Party leader said: “This is another example of the appalling way the lottery is run. The proportion of funds going to good causes has plummeted.”
Rhodes revealed the £154.8m taken in a letter to Dame Meg Hillier, the chair of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee.
The interim boss of the UKGC revealed that the costs to regulate and licence the UK’s National Lottery had increased significantly to £154.8m, over £50 more than had been budgeted for when funding levels were set three years ago.
Rhodes admitted that the extra money was taken from funds intended for charities and good causes but claimed the £154.8m amounted to just 0.7% of the £14.5bn total paid out.
A Gambling Commission spokesperson said: “We have made every effort to keep costs low while ensuring that we fulfil our statutory duties and deliver the best possible outcome for the National Lottery.
“Whole life costs of the programme, which includes both running the fourth National Lottery licence competition and subsequently regulating the fourth licence over the 10 years of its duration, are currently forecast to be £154.9m, which, against the overall forecasted value of the licence of £80bn, represents a reasonable investment in ensuring we appoint the best applicant to fulfil the statutory duties and maximise returns for good causes.”
The UKGC’s running costs could soar even further after the current lottery licence holder Camelot launched legal proceedings against the regulator over its decision to award the licence to Allwyn. Camelot has held the right to run the lottery since its inception in 1994.
The regulator announced Allwyn as the preferred applicant on 15 March, but Camelot took advantage of a legal standstill contained in the process to issue High Court proceedings.
Nigel Railton, Camelot CEO, said: “We are launching a legal challenge today in our capacity as an applicant for the fourth licence because we firmly believe that the Gambling Commission has got this decision badly wrong. When we received the result, we were shocked by aspects of the decision.
“Despite lengthy correspondence, the Commission has failed to provide a satisfactory response. We are therefore left with no choice but to ask the court to establish what happened,” Railton added.
“Irrespective of Camelot’s dual roles as current operator and applicant for the next National Lottery licence, the competition is one of the largest UK government-sponsored procurements and the process deserves independent scrutiny.
“Separately, more than 1,000 Camelot employees work tirelessly to successfully operate The National Lottery under the current licence and, at the very least, they are owed a proper explanation,” the CEO concluded.
