Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has had discussions with gambling firms on helping to ensure customers are able to withdraw surplus funds from betting accounts in timely way.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The department meets regularly with the gambling industry and its representatives, where this issue has previously been raised.
Data provided to the Commission by some of the largest gambling companies shows that those firms approve, process and fulfil around 99% of customer withdrawal requests within 24 to 48 hours of the request being made. However, problems with withdrawing funds from gambling accounts remain the most common topic raised by people contacting the Gambling Commission’s Contact Centre.
The Commission’s licence conditions and codes of practice contain a number of provisions to ensure operators treat their customers in a fair and open way. It makes clear that any necessary identity verification or anti money laundering checks should take place when funds are deposited rather than when customers try to make withdrawals.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimates they have made of the cost to the state of gambling-driven crime.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office does not hold the information which you have requested on the estimates for state costs arising from gambling- driven crime.
The Home Office holds information on the value of assets recovered under POCA 2002 from offenders who committed other types of offences including fraud and money laundering. This data is included in the Asset Recovery Statistical Bulletin which is published every year. Its latest release was in September 2022, covering the period between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022. The total value of proceeds of crime recovered under POCA from fraud related offences over the last six financial years, is £388m as shown in Table 11.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Gambling Commission has made an assessment of Entain UK's compliance with online gambling advertising rules.
Answered by Paul Scully
I am unable to comment on specific cases of regulatory action taken by the Gambling Commission. However, I have provided some overarching information on online advertising rules contained in the Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP).
Licensed operators are required to ensure that advertising of gambling products and services is undertaken in a socially responsible manner and complies with the UK Advertising Codes issued by the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) and administered by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). As part of its investigation into Entain Group’s regulatory failures, the Gambling Commission made an assessment of its general compliance with the LCCP, which identified anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures, as reflected in the published press statement. Further detail can be found on the Commission’s website.
Asked by: Simon Hoare (Conservative - North Dorset)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made a recent assessment of the financial impact of gambling-related (a) fraud and (b) other acquisitive crimes on the victims of those crimes; what the value was of assets recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 from offenders who committed gambling-related crimes in the latest period for which data is available; if she will make an estimate of the financial compensation provided to the victims of gambling-related crimes by (a) each and (b) all gambling companies in the latest period for which data is available; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Home Office does not hold the information which you have requested on the value of assets recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) from offenders who committed gambling related crimes.
The Home Office holds information on the value of assets recovered under POCA 2002 from offenders who committed other types of offences including fraud and money laundering. This data is included in the Asset Recovery Statistical Bulletin which is published every year.
Its latest release was in September 2022, covering the period between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022 . The total value of proceeds of crime recovered under POCA from fraud related offences over the last six financial years, is £388m as shown in Table 11.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether Entain has paid the £17 million fine imposed on it by the UK Gambling Commission in August 2022 for anti-money laundering failures.
Answered by Paul Scully
I am unable to comment on specific cases of regulatory action taken by the Gambling Commission. However, I have provided some overarching information on regulatory settlements.
Regulatory settlements are a possible outcome of Gambling Commission enforcement action, and this may include the operator paying a financial amount for socially responsible purposes. The Commission’s process for the approval of destinations of regulatory settlements ensures that only projects that meet the criteria are able to receive funds. When a project is approved, it is matched with outstanding funds and payment is arranged swiftly, with funds being ringfenced pending the payment. More information on the current process and destinations is available at the Gambling Commission’s website.
Asked by: Kevin Brennan (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, (b) the Gambling Commission and (c) the Financial Conduct Authority on the regulation of crypto-based products and services.
Answered by Richard Fuller
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
The Cryptoasset Taskforce, comprising HM Treasury, the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), continues to monitor ongoing development in cryptoasset markets, and is taking forward a range of regulatory measures to mitigate market integrity risks, protect consumers and support innovation in the cryptoasset market.
Since January 2020, cryptoasset firms operating in the UK have been subject to the Money Laundering Regulations. To protect consumers, on 18 January 2022, the government set out its intention to legislate later this year to bring certain cryptoassets into financial promotion regulation. This would ensure that relevant cryptoasset promotions are held to the same high standards for fairness, clarity and accuracy that exist in the financial services industry. Additionally, on the 20 July, the government introduced the Financial Services and Markets Bill, which includes a measure allowing HM Treasury to bring stablecoins, where used as a means of payment, within the UK regulatory perimeter.
The government has committed to consult later this year on the broader regulation of cryptoassets.
Asked by: Lord Lipsey (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what risk assessment they carried out before parliamentarians were classified as politically exposed persons for the purpose of holding a betting account.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Money Laundering Regulations 2017 require firms in regulated sectors, including those regulated by the Gambling Commission, to obtain and verify certain information about their customers. Firms must have in place appropriate risk management systems and procedures to determine whether a customer is a Politically Exposed Person (PEP), or a family member or known close associate of a PEP. This is in line with the international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force.
Original measures on PEPs were put into UK law via the transposition of the European Union’s fourth money laundering directive in June 2017, as was the legal requirement at the time. There was therefore no risk assessment undertaken specifically by the UK but the impact assessment from this process can be found here. The Financial Action Task Force is the international standard-setter in anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing, and its guidance on PEPs can be found here.
HM Treasury is currently undertaking a review of the 2017 Regulations. As part of this review, the proportionality of current requirements regarding domestic PEPs is being considered and balanced alongside the risks posed to the UK’s financial system, and our international obligations to mitigate these risks. The Review will be published this summer.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay on 17 November (HL3696), what is their estimate of the total number of stolen funds that are used for gambling purposes each year.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Written Answer of 17 November set out amounts divested by licensed operators in cases where there was both identified anti-money laundering failings and criminal spending and an individual was criminally convicted. The Gambling Commission does not hold further data on stolen funds used for gambling purposes.
All gambling operators have a responsibility to keep financial crime out of gambling. The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 places an obligation on operators to be alert to attempts by customers to gamble money acquired unlawfully, either to obtain legitimate money in return or simply using criminal proceeds to fund gambling.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many times gambling companies have paid compensation for failing to prevent money laundering when an individual criminally convicted of theft used stolen funds to gamble; and what was the total amount paid by gambling companies in such cases.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Gambling Commission can fine a gambling operator if a licence condition has been breached. In some circumstances, the Commission may decide to agree a regulatory settlement instead of issuing a fine. While fines are paid to the exchequer, regulatory settlements are divested by the company to third parties. In circumstances where a victim of crime can be identified, for example an employer whose money was stolen by someone who went on to gamble with those funds, the Commission would expect funds to be divested back to the employer.
The information we hold shows that in the last three years, the Commission has required four operators to pay compensation to victims where stolen funds have been used to gamble and an individual has been criminally convicted. The total amount paid by each gambling company is as follows:
Betway - £5,068,577
Gamesys - £460,472
Platinum Gaming - £629,420
Petfre - £140,000
In addition to these figures, all regulatory actions taken by the Gambling Commission are accessible on their Public Register which may be found at the following link.
Asked by: Carolyn Harris (Labour - Swansea East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of new bank transfer based payment methods offered by gambling providers on the efficacy of gambling transaction blocks as a tool to support people struggling with gambling harms.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The Government has made no such assessment in relation to the effect of new bank transfer based payment methods. However, licensed gambling operators are only permitted to use payment methods where they are able to ensure they are compliant with all Gambling Commission licence conditions and requirements, including anti-money laundering and safer gambling measures.
The Government also recognises that the financial services industry plays an important role in helping their customers monitor and manage their gambling spending, including by offering gambling transaction blocks. In recent years there has been considerable voluntary progress in this area by the industry, with almost all the largest UK banks, as well as the larger digital banks, now offering gambling transaction blocks for debit and credit card transactions.
The Government welcomes this progress and continues to work together with industry to identify what more can be done in this area. As such, I will soon be hosting a roundtable with the financial sector to discuss what action has taken place to date on this issue and look at opportunities for additional progress which further support UK consumers. This will include looking at wider payment methods.