Responsible Gambling Help · Gaming · Lotteries · Online Betting

The Gambling Act 2005 for Gaming/Betting Punters

The Gambling Act 2005 gives greater protection for the vulnerable minority of people (betting punters) who have problems with their gambling habits.

The Act introduced a unified regulator for gambling in Great Britain, the Gambling Commission, and a new licensing regime for commercial bookmakers (to be conducted by the Commission or by Licensing Authorities, depending on the matter to be licensed).

The Act removed from licensing justices all responsibility for granting gaming and betting permissions, which they had exercised previously.

Instead, the Gambling Commission and ourselves will share between us responsibility for all those matters previously regulated by the licensing justices.

One of the objectives of the Act is protecting children and other vulnerable persons/punters from being harmed or exploited by gambling (or from greedy bookmakers).

The main objectives of the Licensing Authority under the Act are:

• Consideration of applications for premises licences and provisional statements.
  
  
• The issue of permits in relation to the use of gaming machines.
  
  
• Endorsement and receipt of Temporary Use Notices and Occasional Use Notices.
  
  
• The Registration of small society lotteries.

• Letting the public know where it can get some help services.
  
  
• Letting the public have well publicized access to information on how to make informed consumer choices and avoid developing gambling addictions.