With changes underway, the Brexit affect on gambling in the UK is in question. Brexit causes major concern for Gibraltar, a British territory off the coast of Spain and a major hub for online gaming, with companies like 888 Holdings and Bet Victor based on the island. A majority of the people who work on Gibraltar live in Spain, and with a split from the EU looming around the corner these companies could potentially lose a substantial part of their workforce. The future of gaming regulation after Britain’s exit from the EU is unclear. With online gambling firms already paying…

Are we in the midst of a British gambling rediscovery? Well, thanks to the convenience with which people can take part in a live game of roulette, it’s served a new generation of players who may have been initially put off by the expensive and exclusive real-life casinos. Casinos only really became popular after the Second World War as the Gaming Act of 1968 allowed the building of commercial casinos. However, it was the simple pleasures found in the bingo halls that really made an impression with the UK public who used these locations for socializing as much as gambling….

iGaming Business – The new advertising regulations that are due to come in as part of the UK Gambling Bill will have a significant impact on football and sports clubs that have become heavily reliant on sponsorship income from Asian operators in the last few years, according to David Zeffman, Partner  at London law firm Olswang. In a column recently published on iGamingBusiness.com, David Zeffman writes that “with at least 15 of the 20 English Premier League football clubs sponsored by Asian gambling companies, the Gambling Commission’s approach to implementing the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Bill (“the Bill”) will inevitably…

Liverpool Echo – Liverpool city centre is officially one of the UK’s gambling hotspots. Research by the Campaign for Fairer Gambling has found that Williamson Square and its immediate surroundings has one of the highest densities of betting shops in the country. The 500 square metre area has the third highest concentration of any town centre with at least seven bookies, the campaign said. And city leaders say the area also boasts a number of payday loans companies and pawn shops. While traditional over-the-counter betting on horses and dogs is still big business for bookies, fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTS)…

Poker News – Last month, a quintet of the main trade associations representing the various facets of the UK gambling industry unveiled the creation of the Industry Group for Responsible Gambling (IGRG). As well as establishing the best practice on consumer protection across the sector, the IGRG will undertake a “stock-take” of current responsible gambling initiatives and identify where standards can be improved. The inaugural chairman, Clive Hawkswood, told PokerNews that despite the perception that problem gambling is widespread across the British Isles, the current rate is at a “historic low” — 0.5% of the adult population. However, he admitted…

UK chancellor George Osborne has announced changes for Point of Consumption Tax (POC) and Fixed-Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs). New tax laws for the UK gambling industry are in the government’s Budget for 2014, with the tax rate for FOBTs increasing to 25%. Additionally, the bingo duty would be cut to 10%, and the government will proceed with plans to introduce a 15% POC tax for remote gambling. UK bookmakers in particular were hit with the announcement that the tax rate for FOBTs will be increased from its current rate of 20% to a new rate of 25%. Shortly after this…