Agenda item

The Committee considered a report setting out the draft revised Statement of Gambling Principles for 2022-2025.

The Gambling Act 2005 placed a statutory requirement on licensing authorities to publish a Statement of Gambling Principles which set out the authority’s expectations with regard to how gambling would be regulated in their area.  The draft revised Statement was intended to replace the Council’s current Statement of Principles which was scheduled to expire in January 2022.

The draft Statement had been prepared in accordance with the regulations within the Gambling Act 2005 and guidance issued by the Gambling Commission.  It was anticipated that the new Statement would be largely unchanged from the current Statement however there would be an increased emphasis on the need for licence holders and applicants to prepare and maintain local risk assessments and the Licensing Authority would develop a Local Area Profile to support this process.

It was clarified that it was considered good practice to publish Local Area Profiles which could not only be used by operators to help them develop mitigating actions to reduce risks to vulnerable people in the vicinity of a licenced establishment but it would also help officers target resources appropriately.

The draft Statement would be subject to a six week public consultation period which would commence on the 8^th November 2021.  The consultation would be shared with both statutory consultees including the Chief Police Officer for the area and business associations as well as non-statutory consultees including the County Council, neighbouring authorities, ward councillors, parish councils and Collectively Camberley.  The outcomes of the consultation would be shared with the Licensing Committee at their meeting on 16^th February 2022.

It was questioned whether the risk assessment might include guidance on how an operator might deal with customers who were known to have a gambling problem.  It was agreed that this would be fed into the consultation.

It was requested that the details of any additional consultees be forwarded to officers.

RESOLVED that:

      i.        The contents of the report be noted

     ii.        The draft Statement of Principles 2022-2025, as set out in the annex to the report, be approved for consultation.