A breif history of gambling in Britain
Betting Gaming and Lotteries Act 1963
Bookies can accept telephone bets if a client has an account. This also applies to emails for bookies with permits.
The Gaming Act 1968
Casino, bingo and gaming machines must be housed in designated premises.
All people participating must be over the age of 18.
Only those in the building are allowed to gamble.
In this sense an online casino can’t be set up in Britain but British citizens are allowed to use a foreign based casino.
Lotteries and Amusments Act 1976
Lottery tickets can be sold anywhere except the street or a machine. This deems the internet as a machine but has granted permission for two lottery management companies to operate over the internet. Playmonday.com in 2006 and the National lottery in 1994.
Casino History
Regulated under the gaming act of 1968, the Government doesn’t control the number of casinos but only the areas in which they’re built.
London: that area which is within the area specified in the licensing (Metropolitan Special Hours Area) Order 1961 - plus the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
Other permitted areas in the UK are:
To house a Casino an applicant must apply for the Gaming boards certificate of consent and be declared a ‘fit and proper person’ to run a Casino. The applicant must then go to a local magistrate and apply for a right to provide commercial gaming, this can be refused if there is not sufficient ‘demand’ in the area.
The new Gaming Bill (October 2004) has abolished ‘permitted areas status’ and the ‘demand’ test for Casinos. It has also introduced the possibility of ‘resort Casinos’.