UK Gambling Commission can reject licences after court ruling

UK Court of Appeal has today upheld an earlier court ruling which allows the UK Gambling Commission to reject licence applications, even if the intended party has satisfied all licence requirements.

The ruling gives the UKGC the ability to reject licence applications if it deems them to be inconsistent with its objectives.

It follows a legal challenge by the UK’s largest pub retailer Greene King, who applied for a bingo licence to run bingo games in their 3000 pubs around the UK.

The licence application was refused on the grounds that Green King’s business model was liable to undermine the objectives of the licensing body.

Following this decision Greene King launched an appeal on the grounds that it had satisfied all the conditions set down by the regulator and that as such the UKGC had no grounds to reject the application.

The initial legal challenge by Greene King was successful, however the case was referred to the Court of Appeal for summary judgment after the UKGC lodged an appeal.

The Court of Appeal supported the UK Gambling Commissions argument, stating that the UKGC was entitled to consider and find the proposed operation of that licence to be inconsistent with the licensing objective and refuse that licence accordingly.

In a statement regarding the ruling, Helen Venn, UK Gambling Commission Programme Director said: "We welcome the Upper Tribunal’s decision, which clarifies the Commission’s powers.

“In our view commercial betting, gaming and bingo and any associated high stakes and prize machines, should only be provided in separate premises licensed for that specific purpose – premises that adults make a deliberate choice to visit in order to gamble.”