Complaints that have been raised about Metropolitan Casinos
Request
Could you send me information on any complaints, concerns or issues that have been raised about Metropolitan Casinos(and their predecessor Casino Caesars) about unfair terms and conditions, victimisation or discrimination.
Response
Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
In your email you have requested information on any complaints, concerns or issues that have been raised about Metropolitan Casinos (and their predecessor Casino Caesars) about unfair terms and conditions, victimisation or discrimination.
It should be noted that the Gambling Commission are an industry regulator and not an ombudsman. Our role is to consider if a gambling business has breached their licence conditions and we will take regulatory action where appropriate. We do not become involved in or “act upon” individual complaints.
We use evidence from a range of places, including from gambling customers, to build cases against gambling businesses. Information provided to us helps inform our work to raise gambling industry standards and make gambling fairer and safer. Information drawn from complaints raised against operators may be used by the Commission to inform our regulatory approach and determine whether any action may be necessary.
If we have sufficient information about an issue with an operator that we feel needs to be pursued, we will commence a dialogue with the operator.
The Commission is a regulatory body with licensing, compliance and enforcement functions; through our regulatory activity, the Commission aims to protect consumers and the wider public, and to raise standards in the gambling industry. We release details of our enforcement activity through public statements.
The public statements will detail the nature of the failings by the operator and the amount of the fine or settlement. Further to this, the Commission also publishes a list of recent regulatory sanctions we have imposed on licence holders.
When we publish these statements and sanctions, we take care to present as much information as possible to ensure that lessons can be learned by operators. However, we must also be careful not to reveal any information that could hinder our ability to conduct investigations or enable those we may investigate to avoid detection.
The Gambling Commission do not provide comment on any information held regarding specific operators, unless it is in the public interest to do so. As such, we are unable to confirm or deny whether we hold any information within the scope of your request. Section 31(3) of the FOIA (Law Enforcement) exemption applies.
Section 31
Section 31(3) provides that the duty to confirm or deny does not arise if, or to the extent that compliance with section 1(1)(a) would or would be likely to, prejudice any of the matters mentioned in subsection (1).
Public interest test
Having acknowledged that the Commission is not able to confirm or deny whether we hold any information within the scope of your request; section 31 of the FOIA requires that we consider a public interest test to identify whether there is a wider public interest in fulfilling this request as opposed to maintaining the exemption.
Arguments in favour of disclosure
- The Commission is a public body which is required to regulate the gambling industry in the public interest. There is therefore a public interest in members of the public having confidence that the Commission is being open and honest with the information it holds so that it can be held to account.
- It is important that the public are assured that the Commission is carrying out its functions in ensuring that any individuals or organisations who are involved in providing gambling facilities to the public have undergone the necessary assessments and will uphold the licencing objectives ensuring that consumers are protected.
- Disclosure of the requested information could demonstrate to stakeholders and relevant parties how the Commission is assessing licensees and, furthermore, this disclosure may encourage stakeholders to work with us and contribute to our programme of work, increasing confidence in the Commission as a regulator and its ability to uphold the law.
Arguments in favour of maintaining the exemption
- Confirming or denying this request for information would impact on the openness of licensees when sharing important information with us, prejudicing the outcome of future regulatory work of the Commission, or another body, to the detriment of the public interest.
- The Gambling Commission’s statutory obligations as set out in section 22 of the Gambling Act 2005 are:
- preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime,
- ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way, and
- protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.
- The Commission will not disclose whether information is or is not held, if it might jeopardise these important functions. Therefore, in this instance merely confirming or denying whether or not the Commission holds information might itself reveal something about what is held or not. It is the nature of the information being requested; which disclosure of its existence would impact the statutory functions of the Commission.
- Finally, only once or if a formal regulatory decision has been made or there is agreement of a regulatory settlement the Commission will ordinarily publish all such decisions in full. Fulfilling this request may prejudice the outcome of any future investigation by the Commission, or another body, to the detriment of the public interest.
Weighing the balance
Given the points considered, the Commission believes that the interests of the public are better served through maintaining the exemption, therefore we are not in a position to confirm or deny whether we hold any information in relation to your request
Review of the decision
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your Freedom of Information request you are entitled to an internal review of our decision. You should write to FOI Team, Gambling Commission, 4th floor, Victoria Square House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B2 4BP or by reply to this email.
Please note, internal review requests should be made within 40 working days of the initial response. Requests made outside this timeframe will not be processed.
If you are not content with the outcome of our review, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have already exhausted the review procedure provided by the Gambling Commission.
It should be noted that if you wish to raise a complaint with the ICO about the Commission’s handling of your request for information, then you are required to do so within six weeks of receiving your final response or last substantive contact with us.
The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in a new tab), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Information Management Team
Gambling Commission