Investigation into election date betting
Request
The recent allegations regarding betting on the election date interests me both as a REDACTED, and as a citizen of the UK
I would therefore like to be supplied with the details of the amounts of money involved, and details of the people and firms involved.
Response
Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
In your email you have referenced the recent investigations regarding betting on the election date and have requested details of the sums of money, people and firms involved.
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 take care to publish as much information as possible. 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.
Section 22 of the Gambling Act 2005 sets out that the Gambling Commission is responsible for regulating and promoting licencing objectives as set out in section 1 of the Gambling Act 2005.
The statutory duties laid out in section 1 are:
a) preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime,
b) ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way, and
c) protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.
Through our regulatory activities we aim to protect consumers and the wider public by raising standards within the gambling industry.
Under section 27 of the Act (opens in a new tab) the Commission may undertake activities for the purpose of assessing compliance with provision made by or by virtue of the Act and whether an offence is being committed under the Act. By virtue of section 28 of the Act (opens in a new tab) the Commission has the power to investigate whether an offence has been committed under the Act and may institute criminal proceedings in respect of offences under the Act in England and Wales.
Any information that we can publicly disclose in relation to particular regulatory activities is made available on our website at the appropriate time so as not to disclose any information that could impact on our ability to make enquiries and conduct investigations or enable those we investigate to avoid detection.
The Commission therefore concludes that the disclosure of this information relating to the investigation in question would prejudice the statutory functions of the Commission.
Section 30(1)(a) of the FOIA, provides that information held by a public authority is exempt information if it has, at any time, been held by the authority for the purposes of:
(a) any investigation which the public authority has a duty to conduct with a view to it being ascertained
(i) whether a person should be charged with an offence, or (ii) whether a person charged with an offence is guilty of it
Consideration of section 30(1) is a two-stage process. Firstly, the exemption must be shown to be engaged. Secondly, as section 30 is a qualified exemption, it is subject to the public interest test.
In this instance the request seeks details of the money, people and firms involved regarding the recent allegations relating to betting on the election date. As has been confirmed on the Metropolitan Police (the MET) website (opens in a new tab), the MET Police will investigate a small number of bets made on the timing of the General Election as part of a joint investigation led by the Gambling Commission.
Bets that are suspected of being in breach of Section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005 (Cheating) will be investigated by the Gambling Commission and are likely to make up the majority of cases.
Bets that are suspected of being in breach of Section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005, but with specific features that could mean additional offences apply, for example Misconduct in Public Office will be assessed by the Met’s Specialist Crime Command to determine what further investigation is required.
The Gambling Commission continues to review whether any bets placed on the timing of the General Election will be within scope of either investigation.
As such, the Commission is not in a position to disclose any information falling within the scope of your request.
Public interest test
The factors the Commission has considered when applying the public interest test have been detailed below and our view is that the public interest lies in favour of applying the exemption.
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 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 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 undertakes investigations of a criminal nature. 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.
In favour of maintaining the exemption
There is an expectation of confidence in much of the Commission’s work. It is the impact on this work of the Commission which is more likely to be affected by disclosure of the information. Should the Commission be required to disclose sensitive and confidential information about the state and nature of its enquiries and inquiries in a particular investigation it may lead to prejudice to that particular investigation, thereby inhibiting our ability to protect consumers.
Disclosure of this information would also undermine the Commission's ability to uphold the licensing objectives (as noted above) which would impact on the trust and confidence of the public in it as a regulator.
Weighing the balance
The Commission acknowledges that there is a public interest in promoting the accountability and transparency of public authorities. However, disclosure of the information would be damaging to the Commission as a regulatory body which ultimately serves to protect the wider public interest.
Looking at all the circumstances of the case and the nature of the request, the Commission considers that the relevant prejudice identified above would be caused to the Commission by disclosure, at this time, and this weighs in the balance when considering the question of public interest. Public knowledge of enquiries before any investigation is formally concluded is very unlikely to contribute to a proper understanding of the investigatory activities of the Commission.
We consider that the public interest is better served by withholding the information relating to the outcome of the enquiries ensuring that consumers are protected through our processes rather than releasing information which in our view will not benefit the public as this matter has not yet concluded.
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