The UK Gambling Bill defied the doomsayers and cleared its final hurdle by passing into law on Thursday afternoon.
The bill was passed by the House of Lords after last-minute bargaining between the two major political parties.
And after successfully negotiating a Lords vote on Wednesday it achieved Royal Assent before the Parliamentary session ended on Thursday.
It will now be added to the UK statute books and the new Gambling Commission is likely to start awarding licences as early as 2007.
The UK’s gaming board has already begun its transformation into the Gambling Commission, which will have sweeping powers over the online industry in the UK.
Operators licensed in the UK will have to abide by a new code of conduct that the Gambling Commission has been working to construct.
Operators’ attentions will now turn to the Treasury, which is expected to set the tax rate for online casinos and poker rooms before the end of the year.
One source close to the DCMS suggested the tax rate could be set as low as 2% for egaming operators.
And there will be new offences covering underage gambling that will carry a maximum penalty of a year in prison.
While the online sector has welcomed the news, the land-based industry will be quietly seething at the bill’s success.
The Conservative Party, which has the majority in the House of Lords, forced the government to dramatically scale-back plans for Las Vegas-style land-based casinos.
But both sides agreed on the need to introduce regulations for online gambling, and insiders reported this was a major incentive in pushing the bill through.
source : egr magazine
