EUROPE

The vice-president of the European Parliament Gianni Pittella and Italian MEP Mario Mauro hosted a Brussels conference called The Gaming Sector Between Europe and the Mediterranean, discussing the possibility of an EU framework for gaming regulation. A representative from the Internal Market and Services Directorate General indicated that there would be a broad consultation on gaming following publication of a green paper later this year.

Separately, another conference entitled The Day of the Authority looked at regulatory aspects of cross-border remote gambling and harmonisation of rules. One bone of contention was the continuing debate over whether there should be pan-EU regulation for gaming – allowing approved operators to offer their services everywhere – or whether individual member states should remain free to establish their own regimes.

The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) held its third annual Responsible Gaming Day at the European Parliament in Brussels in October. With speakers from the industry, European politics and academia, topics covered included online gaming and future EU gambling policy.

GREECE

The Greek government has introduced draft legislation for regulating gaming. Since 2002, only the lottery-and-betting monopoly OPAP and casinos have been allowed to offer gambling. But the European Court of Justice is fining the nation €32,000 a day for violating EU principles such as those covering the free movement of goods and services, and there is a vast illegal gaming industry – estimated to comprise as many as 20,000 AWPs and 150,000 slots.

The draft bill would create an independent gaming watchdog, contains measures to protect minors – including limitations on the location of gaming premises, and a requirement that each player have a card recording their age – and provides for the granting of licences to Internet gaming operators.

IRELAND

The Revenue Commissioners have confirmed that Irish casinos must apply VAT at the standard rate on gambling income, saying that some have incorrectly believed it to be exempt. Only lotteries, sports betting at bookmakers, and totalisator betting at horse races and dog tracks are exempt, although betting tax may still be applied. “All other forms of gambling carried on as a business are, and have always been, subject to VAT at the standard rate,” the Commissioners said – explicitly including gaming machines in their guidance.

SOUTH AFRICA

Casinos in South Africa must now report financial transactions over 25,000 rand (£2200), as part of an effort to combat money laundering. It is believed that criminal syndicates using casinos as well as the property market have made the country into one of the world’s black spots for cleansing ill-gotten funds.

SPAIN

Spain’s smoking ban is expected to come into force in January 2011, a year later than originally planned. Smoking is already largely illegal in workplaces, but bars and restaurants have until now been permitted to maintain smoking areas.

UK

HM Revenue & Customs brought new rates for gaming duty into effect for quarters ending on or after 31 October. The first £987,500 of gross gaming yield in a six-month accounting period is taxed at 15 percent; the next £680,750 at 20 percent; the next £1,192,500 at 30 percent; the next £2,516,750 at 40 percent; and the remainder at 50 percent. Gaming businesses are required to make a payment on account after the first three months of the six-month accounting period.

The Scottish county of West Dunbartonshire, near Glasgow, has effectively banned all new licensed premises from most of its territory, arguing that there are already too many. Its so-called Overprovision Policy covers 15 out of 18 areas within the county, while in the three remaining areas applicants for licences will have to prove that they will not attract customers from the areas where licences are unavailable.

U.S.

The U.S. needs federal measures to combat gambling addiction, according to the executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling. An explosion in the number of casinos and lotteries, which have not only grown in number but are now available in far more areas of the country than they were a few decades ago, has resulted in a confusing array of regulatory bodies, he was quoted as saying. The nation has 12 casino commissions, 225 tribal regulatory agencies, 42 lottery commissions, 42 parimutuel regulatory agencies, and many more county bodies, Keith Whyte said.

The city of Jacksonville, Florida is trying to regulate gaming businesses that seem to exploit legal loopholes by giving customers sweepstakes entries for free or in return for purchasing other services, such as Internet access. Customers can then use terminals resembling slot machines to see if they have won, according to reports. The city hopes to limit the number of such businesses, tax them, restrict their signage and prevent them serving alcohol, but debate continues on how to frame the rules, for example by structuring the tax regime such that smaller operators are not hit much harder than larger ones.

Meanwhile, in Parma, Ohio, city authorities are pondering how to treat arcades that offer Internet games.

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