Archive for October 8th, 2006

UK to become World Leader in online gambling

PLANS to turn Britain into a “world leader” in internet gambling have been drawn up by ministers, according to internal Whitehall documents.

In stark contrast to America, where online gambling has in effect been outlawed, ministers want to attract offshore companies to Britain.

New legislation will lift the current ban on online gaming businesses in Britain from next year and the government may introduce a favourable tax regime.

At the end of the month, Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary, will host an international summit of politicians at Ascot racecourse to discuss regulatory standards. Officials from the United Nations, the European Commission and the major credit card companies have been invited.

The government’s desire to take the lead in the online gambling sector is spelt out in a briefing note written for Caborn before a meeting in July last year with Mark Davies, managing director of Betfair, the online betting exchange.

The note says: “It is government-wide policy, and that includes HMT (Her Majesty’s Treasury), that Britain should become a world leader in the field of online gambling, in order to provide our citizens with the opportunity to gambling (sic) in a safe, well-regulated environment.”

Luring online poker and casino firms into Britain may prove difficult. The industry has told Caborn that anything more than a 2% tax on gross profits would be unacceptable.

Some companies have asked the government to consider a system of “secondary” licensing, which would give them the British regulatory “stamp of approval” while retaining the tax benefits of remaining offshore.

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