The Gambling Commission has issued a License Conditions and Codes of Practice which is imposed universally upon all operators in the UK gambling industry. The Code has been promulgated as a result of European Union Directives part of which has led to the Gambling Act 2005 and also in response to consultation within the UK gambling industry and other stakeholders and interest groups.
The Code of Practice provides the rules for all gambling operators in the UK, the general conditions which attach to operator and personal licenses as well as the principal code of practice which applies for the delivery of "social responsibility" and "ordinary" provisions within the code. The License Conditions and Codes of Practice also include a code of practice for casinos to implement in connection with access for children and young persons.
Broadly, the document can be viewed as outlining the General Conditions for holding and operating under a license and a Code of Practice for Gambling Operators to be implemented.
The General Conditions handle the standards to be set in terms of how you conduct gambling business. For instance, who may apply for a license and when you need to apply; outlines of the technical standards gaming machines are subject to; the financial fitness standards of operators and individuals; protection of customers monies and the handling of cash and in particular, money laundering issues which are also regulated by a stream of other UK and EU legislation. In addition, the General Conditions also cover issues as widespread as the tipping of casino staff to the display of licenses including credit licenses where applicable.
The General Conditions deal primarily with Operator Licenses however there is a smaller section dealing with Personal Licenses.
The second portion of the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice deal with the various codes of practice that must be implemented and followed by licensees. The Code of Practice for Gambling Operators includes minimum standard practices to be followed when dealing with certain situations likely to be encountered by operators and this has been instituted as a direct result of the Gambling Act 2005.
The Code of Practice for Gambling Operators includes direction on minimum financial standards to ensure compliance with money laundering provisions not only of the Gambling Act 2005 but also the requirements of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Terrorism Act 2000. Compliance with the Code does not guarantee you are behaving lawfully but following the Code will mitigate the likelihood of falling foul of the law and also will weigh very heavily in your favour if you are following the Code but yet still broke the law somewhere else.
The principal or operators code also deals with the protection of children and vulnerable persons (and it should be noted this is one of the three main objectives of the Gambling Commission). In addition there are standards for being "Fair and Open" in terms of business dealings and gambling standards; marketing standards and avoidance of misleading promotional activity; the handling of complaints and disputes; employees and their management; and finally, on pool betting.
