The White Paper on Gambling Reform continues to be the most crucial and anticipated document for the gambling industry. However, nothing has been released, despite coming close to publishing several times over the past couple of years. In June of this year, we informed you that the White Paper was to be published soon, but the latest news says there is still no consensus regarding its publication.
However, considering the volatile period in the UK, specifically regarding the multiple changes in Cabinet, the publication of the White Paper has been pushed back even more.
White Paper could be postponed until next year
Many people have thoughts regarding its publication date or its contents. However, according to the CEO of Flutter Entertainment, Peter Jackson, it is very likely that the White Paper will be postponed until 2023. He believes that the new Prime Minister will want to "make their mark", which will take time.
According to him, predicting the approximate timing would be impossible since the publication has already been pushed back numerous times. He stated, "I don't know if I can really comment on timing because I've tried to comment for the last two years and keep getting it wrong, so I might have lost some credibility there," he said. "But I suspect it'll end up coming out after Christmas as there isn't much time now before Christmas."
Main reasons for the delay
Jackson also believes that the main reasons for the extreme delay so far are the numerous changes in Cabinet. Moreover, there have also been various changes in the UK Gambling Commission's staff, which have contributed to the delay.
The significant delays began in July when the White Paper was nearing the publication date. They started with the resignation of Chirs Philip, who was the Gambling Minister responsible for the Paper. The resignation of Bonis Johnson followed, with a complete change in Cabinet when Liz Truss took the position.
Truss only remained in office for little more than a month, resulting in resignation and a new change in staff. All these things pushed the publication even more, so now we have to wait and see if 2023 will finally be the year that the White Paper will finally see the light of day.