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The milestones we plan to complete within the business plan 2024 to 2025.
Published: 15 April 2024
Last updated: 15 April 2024
This version was printed or saved on: 19 May 2024
Online version: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/about-us/guide/business-plan-and-budget-2024-to-2025
Overview: ## Introduction
This year, 2024 to 2025, represents the first year of our new 3-year Corporate Strategy: Gambling Regulation in a Digital Age. I am proud to introduce our ambitions for the year ahead, as we strike a balance, putting more investment into those areas that we know will be important in the coming years, as identified through our strategic priorities.
One of our key principles is putting people first. This means every one of the 22.5 million people who gamble in Great Britain every year. We care about all of them, and the work we have set out to achieve is in everybody’s interest.
We will make further progress to deliver the important reforms set out in the Government’s White Paper High Stakes - Gambling reform for the digital age (opens in new tab), working closely with colleagues at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on cross-cutting matters. We will continue our work regulating a new operator of the National Lottery to ensure the public continue to benefit from a successful National Lottery in its milestone 30th year of operation.
We will also continue to support and assess the industry’s own approaches to improve consumer experience, such as the development of the single customer view (SCV) challenge solution - GamProtect.
Better evidence, driven by more effective use of data will lead to better regulation, which means better outcomes for consumers, the public and licensees. We will complete the launch of the Gambling Survey for Great Britain and make further improvements to our capacity to report on and analyse data, close evidence gaps in priority areas, pilot industry data sharing and revise our approach to regulatory return data.
A lot of our scope to deliver better outcomes sits within our licensing, compliance, and enforcement work. We want to make regulation work for all, and that is why, this year, we will be making improvements including developing the introduction of an account management style framework, responding to our consultation on our approach to financial penalties, increasing investment in preventing illegal gambling and increasing the level of transparency around industry compliance.
I want to see a reduction in the reliance on formal enforcement processes to raise standards. Enforcement action invariably means consumers have already been poorly treated. I want to see a greater focus on getting things right, and compliance at the earliest opportunity where issues arise. To support this, we will continue efforts to create the right conditions for those licensees committed to and accepting of their responsibilities towards consumers. Those who do not meet their responsibilities will continue to face escalating action.
And those who are operating outside of the law – illegal gambling operators – can expect to experience the full extent of our powers.
Due to the scale of the actions we have set out in our corporate strategy, some of the deliverables within this business plan describe the progress that will be made against those multi-year commitments in 2024 to 2025.
It is about building solid foundations for continued progress, to maintain our effectiveness regulating the largest online gambling market in the world and enhance our commitment to doing the right thing, even if it is sometimes difficult.
In addition to the specific deliverables outlined in this plan, we will continue to deliver our core regulatory functions. We are also working to identify and improve key enablers which help the Commission operate effectively. Of key note are areas related to our people plans, effective governance, the continued implementation of our digital roadmap and our work on a more sustainable future funding model.
It is our people that make the Commission a great place to work, and we want to support all of our people to make sure we have the skills, capabilities and diversity of thought and opportunity to push forward with this work.
This business plan represents the first part of realising the ambition set out in our new corporate strategy. I am excited about the work ahead and delivering for consumers in increasingly open, innovative and progressive ways to make gambling safer, fairer and free from crime.
Regulation must keep pace with industry and societal developments. Identifying and investing in technology and improvements in data analytics, will ensure regulation remains fit for purpose.
How gambling is offered is increasing in complexity and sophistication. We need to understand developments in data usage among industry to regulate the market effectively.
Here are the specific deliverables which will support the delivery of this strategic focus:
We will:
Why: In line with the commitments in our strategy we are continuing work to improve our evidence base on the six themes outlined in our Evidence Gaps and Priorities report. This includes the collection of new evidence via our Consumer Voice research programme, Gambling Survey for Great Britain, and our data innovation programme.
As a result: We will make progress in improving our evidence base through the filling of known evidence gaps. Our spring conference will once again bring together a wide range of experts and interested parties to reflect on and discuss current evidence challenges. Procuring a high-quality provider to deliver our Consumer Voice programme will ensure our regulation continues to be responsive to and informed by consumer experiences and perspectives.
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to make more effective use of data.
As a result: Regulatory return data requests will be streamlined, enabling more timely, accurate data to be collected. Future requests will clearly define the data we ask for and the purposes for which it will be used. We will also ensure that operators comply with the requirement to submit accurate and timely data. The resulting framework will be iterative in process to build confidence in the data. An improved understanding of market developments and trends will help us identify issues impacting consumers and evaluate the impact of interventions.
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to make more effective use of data, to build a better understanding of the market and a leading understanding of gambling related harm to continue enhancing our work around consumer protection.
As a result: We will ensure the regular collection and publication of official statistics. The data will be published to the UK Data Archive for increased transparency and to encourage wider analysis.
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to significantly increase the depth of our understanding of the gambling market and consumer behaviour. Previous Patterns of Play research demonstrated the value that can be obtained from a granular dataset. We and others have made extensive use of the outputs of that research. We are now exploring how we can develop an approach to obtaining similar data on a recurring basis.
As a result: We will take a significant step in exploring how data and related systems can make gambling regulation more effective. Successful delivery of this pilot will provide a practical insight into how operator data can be collected and the governance, legal and data protections processes required to do this effectively. This work has the potential to create improved analytical outputs which will provide insights into changes in the market and how consumers gamble.
We will procure a supplier to deliver a wide range of data science support.
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to invest in tools, technology and skills to enhance our knowledge, improve the integrity of our data and make it more relevant to current issues.
As a result: It will enable us to take more advantage of the opportunities presented by the other initiatives in this section. Improving the evidence base which informs our work will mean we are more responsive to issues impacting consumers, the wider public and licensees.
Read more details about this strategic focus in our corporate strategy.
The gambling industry continues to evolve and develop at pace. As the regulator of this industry, we must ensure that our regulation continues to adapt and evolve so we continue to regulate effectively in the public interest.
Here are the specific deliverables which will support the delivery of this strategic focus:
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to invest in a programme of activities exploring how licensees can be supported to meet their responsibilities to consumers and the wider public.
As a result: We will have a framework of activity and channels of communication that will fulfil the mutual appetite for increased transparency and engagement. Improved communication will enable licensees to address issues earlier and reduce the risk of adverse consumer outcomes.
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to evolve our licensing, compliance and enforcement work including improving our core processes, technology and related approaches.
As a result: We will have enhanced operational capabilities ensuring that we can continue to deliver an effective and trusted service, capable of keeping pace with the digital age. This in turn will increase the effectiveness of our work to deliver positive outcomes for consumers, the wider public and licensees.
We will publish a response to our consultation and implement any changes arising.
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to evolve our licensing, compliance and enforcement work including improving our core processes, technology and related approaches.
As a result: The industry will have a clear understanding of our future approach to financial penalties.
We will publish information on our compliance findings whether regulatory action is taken or not in the form of compliance snapshots.
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to develop our approach to assurance including increasing transparency of industry compliance levels by theme and licensee.
As a result: The public and licensees will be more aware of relative levels of compliance. We will be better able to identify trends and themes across the industry to target our resource to the greatest effect. We will measure progress by reporting on increasing levels of industry compliance, building an initial benchmark and then demonstrating positive trends towards greater compliance.
Read more details about this strategic focus in our corporate strategy.
The Government published its White Paper High Stakes - Gambling reform for the digital age (opens in new tab) in April 2023. The White Paper sets the immediate policy agenda for the gambling market in Great Britain, and assigns us, as the gambling regulator, a number of commitments.
As we deliver our commitments from the White Paper, we aim to ensure that our regulation is as clear and as focused as possible, making it easier for licensees to operate compliantly at the earliest possible opportunity. This is consistent with the National Audit Office’s principles of effective regulation, the Regulators’ Code and our own Statement of Principles.
Here is the specific deliverable which will support the delivery of this strategic focus:
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to deliver those measures we are responsible for in the Government’s White Paper including improving transparency to consumers, consumer choice as well as player protections and product safety.
As a result: We will deliver on the Government’s ambition to ensure that gambling regulation in Great Britain remains appropriate, proportionate and effective in this digital age. Online gambling will be safer by design, with licensees marketing their products responsibly and being more proactive in preventing unchecked and unaffordable gambling.
Read more details about this strategic focus in our corporate strategy.
It is in the best interests of consumers and the public to secure the compliance of a licensee at the earliest opportunity. We want to achieve that objective through more proactive activities and interventions with licensees and reduce reliance on reactive compliance and enforcement activity.
We are clear this shift is only appropriate where licensees are making best endeavours to operate compliantly and with due regard for consumers and the public. Where they are not, we will continue to take decisive and escalating enforcement action.
Here are the specific deliverables which will support the delivery of this strategic focus:
We will create a work plan for the forum to deliver against.
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to build on our existing approach to ensure we are engaging with a wide range of stakeholders.
As a result: We will have broader relationships with industry and better insight into the environment in which licensees operate.
We will conduct a strategic assessment focused on the fair and open licensing objective which will be informed by our consumer research programme, data from Alternative Dispute Resolution providers and others, and by our findings from compliance work and horizon scanning.
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to increase the resource available to improve our understanding of issues which pose a risk to the fair and open licensing objective. This will enhance our work on ensuring gambling operators conduct business in a fair and open way and will enhance consumer perceptions of how gambling is offered within our market.
As a result: We will have a greater understanding of what the main issues are for consumers in respect of the fair and open licensing objective, and therefore where to target our resources. This is to help plan work to best deliver positive change such as:
We will continue to measure and report on consumer survey responses obtained through the Gambling Survey for Great Britain. We will also monitor trends in complaints to our Contact Centre and compliance assessment outcomes.
Read more details about this strategic focus in our corporate strategy.
For the first time in the history of the National Lottery there has been a change in licensee.
Our priority, in accordance with our statutory function and core regulatory outcomes, is to uphold the National Lottery duties, ensuring that the Lottery is run with all due propriety, in a way that protects players’ interests, and then ensures the maximisation of returns to good causes.
Here is the specific deliverable which will support the delivery of this strategic focus:
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to complete our oversight and assurance of the transition to, and implementation of, the 4NL Licence and to embed our regulatory approach to the Fourth Licence.
As a result: In delivering this we will oversee and assure the delivery of Allwyn’s application in full in line with legal commitments. We will successfully close down the 4NL programme and ensure successful knowledge transfer of relevant items to the 4NL regulation team. We will measure success by assessing whether the programme is successfully closed down by 28 May 2025. We will also measure success by determining whether Allwyn successfully achieves Fully Implemented Commencement of its application in line with its obligations.
Read more details about this strategic focus in our corporate strategy.
Our most important asset is our people. This year we will start to develop and implement elements of a new people strategy which will help ensure we can attract, recruit and retain a diverse and talented team of people who can help deliver our work to make gambling safer, fairer and crime free.
We will:
Why: Our most important asset is our people. To deliver our strategy we will need to continuously improve, and we will do this by further increasing the engagement of every colleague and improving our organisational effectiveness. We aim to be a first-class regulator that attracts, recruits and retains diverse and talented people who are able to realise our ambition of making gambling safe, fair and crime free.
As a result: We will maximise the potential of our existing people enabling us to retain key skills and expertise whilst also attracting new and diverse talent into the organisation. We will retain the necessary knowledge and skills to support those we regulate, including having an understanding of the gambling market and regulation to enhance all aspects of our delivery, enabling us to implement proportionate and effective approaches to help make gambling fair, safe and crime free. This in turn will increase the effectiveness of our work to deliver positive outcomes for consumers, the wider public and licensees.
In addition to specific engagement efforts as part of our work to improve our operations, data and proactivity, we will build on our existing programme of stakeholder engagement to continue to engage with a wide range of stakeholders as part of our day to day work.
We will:
Why: This forms part of our strategic commitment to build on our existing approach to ensure we are engaging with a wide range of stakeholders.
As a result: We will continue to maximise the benefit for consumers, the wider public and our licensees of our standing as an influential gambling regulator. We will use our positions in relevant transnational organisations, resulting in increased levels of cross-jurisdictional cooperation on shared objectives such as illegal gambling and the prevention of financial crime.
We will work with Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to review our fees model.
Why: To prepare options to deliver the Government’s White Paper commitment to change the system for setting our fees.
As a result: Government will have workable options to deliver their White Paper commitment. A revised funding system will enable us to adjust our fees more flexibly to ensure that we can meet the challenges of regulation, the cost of regulation is recovered, and costs are fairly allocated between licensees as is the case with other regulators.
Our budget for 2024 to 2025 will support the successful delivery of year 1 of our 3 year strategy.
Our financial management arrangements reflect the principles set out within Managing Public Money and to ensure that we comply with accounting standards as set out in HM Treasury’s Financial Reporting Manual (FReM) and our Management Agreement with the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS).
For Gambling regulation, we are budgeting to receive a total income of £27.5m of which £26.8m is fees charged to gambling operators. The total expenditure is budgeted at £31.6m. This is in excess of our income, and as such we will be utilising £4.1m from our Reserves.
For the National Lottery, we are budgeting to receive a £35m Grant in Aid and the budgeted expenditure is £35m.
| Income type and expenditure | Gambling regulation (£m) | The National Lottery (£m) | Commission total (£m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee income | 26.8 | 0 | 26.8 |
| Grant in Aid income from DCMS | 0 | 35 | 35 |
| Total income | 27.5 | 35 | 62.5 |
| Operating expenditure | 31.6 | 35 | 66.6 |
| Drawdown from Reserves | 4.1 | 0 | 4.1 |
| Sector | Amount (percentage) |
|---|---|
| Betting | 33% |
| Casino | 29% |
| Software | 18% |
| Bingo | 4% |
| Lottery | 6% |
| Machines | 5% |
| Arcades | 5% |
| Income split | Amount (percentage) |
|---|---|
| Remote | 29% |
| Non-remote | 71% |