Any Questions?
Are there many places in the country where there is still a level of ignorance of the Gambling Act?
Over two years after the Gambling Act 2005 came into force, there are still some alarming knowledge gaps north of the border both in terms of operation and administration. Some Scottish licensing authorities are taking positive and proactive steps to increase their knowledge of this area, and I recently delivered a training session for the Solicitors and licensing administration staff of Renfrewshire Council, who deserve credit for taking this initiative.
Many of the licensing authorities north of the border do have a sound grasp of their duties under the 2005 Act, but it's also fair to say that others have struggled because their attentions have been diverted by the implementation of the new Scottish Licensing Act. The new alcohol licensing regime, which came into force on 1 September 2009, kept licensing boards incredibly busy, and as a result many of the gambling issues were put on the "back burner". It also has to be remembered that the gambling legislation is complex, esoteric, and at times impenetrable. However, even allowing for that, I have clients who have been waiting for almost 18 months simply to have their gambling applications heard, which is untenable from a business perspective.
Scotland previously has had different laws to England and Wales on some aspects of gambling. Did the Gambling Act normalise these or are there still some differences?
Scotland is governed by the Gambling Act 2005, and in general the Act applies in the same way both north and south of the border. There are some significant differences, however, especially in relation to how gambling law interacts with alcohol licensed premises. There is also a persistent issue with poor drafting on the part of the Westminster draftsman, who seems often to ignore the separate Scottish system. As a consequence, anomalies occur. These cross-border issues were experienced under the old Gaming Act 1968 and it was hoped that the new 2005 Act would resolve them, but alas that has not been the case. For example, the 2005 Act provides for certain enforcement tasks to be undertaken in relation to checking the compliance of licensed premises gaming machine permits issued under Schedule 13. But Schedule 13 does not apply in Scotland! This means that the enforcement powers are substantially different.
As a law firm, how approachable have you found the Gambling Commission?
The early versions of the Guidance to Licensing Authorities issued by the Gambling Commission were, I have to say, poor when it came to Scotland-specific advice. I was therefore very pleased to see that the third issue of the Guidance from May 2009, was much more detailed from the Scottish perspective. I should also say that I've worked with the Commission on a few awareness-raising seminars in Scotland, and they have always been helpful in that regard. I have spoken with the Scottish compliance officers on various occasions and they are always willing to listen and discuss issues as they arise.
What aspects of the Gambling Act would you improve?
There are still, of course, many difficulties. I think there is a significant divergence between the two jurisdictions in relation to the enforcement of duties and prosecution of offences in relation to premises licences. The English draftsman has left us up in Scotland with a dogs dinner when it comes to which type of enforcement officer can carry out which type of enforcement activity. The 2005 Act requires "licensing authority officers" to carry out certain tasks, but in Scotland there is a problem with this because the licensing authority is the licensing board – a separate legal entity from the local authority, whereas in England the local authority is also the licensing authority.
Licensing boards in Scotland do not have employees. This means that the board, as a licensing authority, does not have any officers. So where does that leave us? In practice, what has happened is that some local authorities have done nothing, and some have asked their alcohol licensing standards officers (LSOs) to be the gambling enforcement officers. But leaving aside the question of whether these officers can legally conduct gambling enforcement in the first place, the LSOs have no formal training on the gambling legislation. They are only trained in relation to alcohol licensing. How can they be expected to enforce a legal regime in which they have no qualification or training?
It appears that only now are we beginning to see a clear focus being placed on the application and enforcement of the Gambling Act 2005 in Scotland, and that is why these issues are starting to crop up more and more. I think it likely that further issues will continue to arise over the next year or so, and there will be plenty of work to be done.
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