Licensing objectives

We are responsible for making sure that all licensing applications meet three objectives.

Published: 1 January 2021

Last updated: 4 December 2023

This version was printed or saved on: 24 March 2025

Online version: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/about-us/guide/licensing-objectives

Overview: The Gambling Act 2005 (opens in new tab) sets out the following licensing objectives.

These 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
protecting children and other vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

We are responsible for making sure all licensing applications meet these objectives.

Our Board of Commissioners, with a range of experience across different sectors, help us to meet our objectives.

The National Lottery

In our role to regulate The National Lottery, our objectives are:

ensuring that the interests of all players are protected
ensuring the Lottery is run with due propriety
that returns to good causes are maximised.

Statement of principles

We publish a statement of principles for licensing and regulation. These principles set out how we govern what we do and how they help to meet our licensing objectives.

How we meet our objectives

We set requirements for licensees in our Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). We carry out assessments to make sure that licensees are compliant.

Using our regulatory powers

We'll take regulatory action if we find evidence a person or business has not been compliant with their licence. In most cases, licensees change their behaviour without the need for us to take formal action.

However, in some cases we use our regulatory powers to take enforcement action. Our statement of principles for licensing and regulation explains our approach.

Download our statement of principles for licensing and regulation (PDF).

Files

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