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Britain to free up gambling in Vegas-style overhaul
By Mike Peacock
LONDON, March 26 (Reuters) - The British government proposed sweeping aside gambling laws dating back to the 1960s on Tuesday, claiming the 42-billion-pound ($60 billion) industry would be revolutionised as a result.
Publishing a policy White Paper, the government said it would allow online gambling for the first time and give casinos the right to offer any form of legal gambling, including Las Vegas-style slot machines with unlimited prizes.
Planned casinos and betting offices will also face fewer regulatory tests before being set up and they will also be able to put on live entertainment and serve alcohol on their gaming floors, unlike now.
Advertising restrictions on gambling will be relaxed but there will be no side-betting allowed on Britain's National Lottery.
To crackdown on illegal gambling the Gambling Commission will get tough new powers, stricter controls will be placed on access by children to gambling places and the industry will fund a trust to tackle gambling addiction with treatment programmes.
The plans are expected to breathe new life into Britain's rundown seaside resorts, whose traditional pastimes no longer lure the millions of holidaymakers who head abroad instead.
"These reforms will significantly increase adult choice while making sure that those who need protection receive it," Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Tessa Jowell said in a statement.
"We are confident that the measures we intend to introduce will rid the industry of outdated restrictions and allow British companies to compete with offshore based internet operations."
Jowell would not say when the plans, put forward in response to recommendations by former chief Treasury adviser Sir Alan Budd's gambling review body, would be made law by parliament.
Industry experts said the axing of much of the Gambling Act of 1968 which aimed to prevent gangster control of casinos and deter casual betting, would be a big boost.
Rank, London Clubs International and Stanley Leisure are the major British players in the industry.
"The package of reforms...strike an appropriate balance between increasing consumer choice for adults, affording greater protection for the minority who have problems with their gambling and ensuring that those who provide commercial gambling observe high standards of probity," said Peter Dean, chairman of the Gaming Board.
Jowell said the industry's profits could rise by around 500 million pounds a year as the result of the reforms.
By Mike Peacock
LONDON, March 26 (Reuters) - The British government proposed sweeping aside gambling laws dating back to the 1960s on Tuesday, claiming the 42-billion-pound ($60 billion) industry would be revolutionised as a result.
Publishing a policy White Paper, the government said it would allow online gambling for the first time and give casinos the right to offer any form of legal gambling, including Las Vegas-style slot machines with unlimited prizes.
Planned casinos and betting offices will also face fewer regulatory tests before being set up and they will also be able to put on live entertainment and serve alcohol on their gaming floors, unlike now.
Advertising restrictions on gambling will be relaxed but there will be no side-betting allowed on Britain's National Lottery.
To crackdown on illegal gambling the Gambling Commission will get tough new powers, stricter controls will be placed on access by children to gambling places and the industry will fund a trust to tackle gambling addiction with treatment programmes.
The plans are expected to breathe new life into Britain's rundown seaside resorts, whose traditional pastimes no longer lure the millions of holidaymakers who head abroad instead.
"These reforms will significantly increase adult choice while making sure that those who need protection receive it," Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Tessa Jowell said in a statement.
"We are confident that the measures we intend to introduce will rid the industry of outdated restrictions and allow British companies to compete with offshore based internet operations."
Jowell would not say when the plans, put forward in response to recommendations by former chief Treasury adviser Sir Alan Budd's gambling review body, would be made law by parliament.
Industry experts said the axing of much of the Gambling Act of 1968 which aimed to prevent gangster control of casinos and deter casual betting, would be a big boost.
Rank, London Clubs International and Stanley Leisure are the major British players in the industry.
"The package of reforms...strike an appropriate balance between increasing consumer choice for adults, affording greater protection for the minority who have problems with their gambling and ensuring that those who provide commercial gambling observe high standards of probity," said Peter Dean, chairman of the Gaming Board.
Jowell said the industry's profits could rise by around 500 million pounds a year as the result of the reforms.