GC launches third-party engagement hub
Non-licensed entities include white label partners.
The hub, which can be found in the compliance section of the Commission’s website, provides details on the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). The Commission requires operators to adhere to the LCCP when dealing with third parties.
The Commission said it chose to create the hub after a spate of enforcement actions taken against operators for “failures” in completing due diligence third party checks.
One of these instances concerned SkillOnNet, which was ordered to pay £305,150 in May after the Commission determined it had breached several stipulations in the LCCP. The offences took place between January 2021 and December 2022.
The LCCP
The LCCP states that all operators are responsible for the third parties they contract with. This means that licence-holders must ensure that their third-parties adhere to the same rules the licensed operator is bound by.
These rules include anti-money laundering and social responsibility measures.
The licensee also has the power to terminate the third party’s contract if the third party breaches the LCCP.
The hub also reminds operators that the responsibility of gambling website compliance – including white labelled sites – falls only with the operator and no one else.
If an operator does not conduct business in a way that minimises licensing objectives, or does not comply with the LCCP, the Commission has the right to step in.
GB Gambling Commission
The hub launch comes at a pivotal point for the Commission. Following the publication of the Gambling Act Review white paper in May, Tim Miller, executive director for research and policy at the Commission, admitted that the body would have “very little space” to consider policies not included in the white paper.
Later in the month, Sarah Gardner, deputy chief executive of the Commission said that the first white paper consultations are set to be published this summer.
Also in May, the Commission published its evidence gaps and priorities for the three years between 2023 and 2026.