Andrew Rhodes: The land-based black market, suspended licences and new slot rules

Andrew Rhodes, Gambling Commission CEO, gave a speech at the British Amusement Catering Trade Association (BACTA) Annual Convention on 27 November 2025.

He briefly addressed the positive relationship between the Commission and BACTA, before tackling the Budget-shaped elephant in the room head-on: "Certainly yesterday we saw some very significant changes in taxation levels in several areas and we will start to see what impacts that may or may not have."

The Treasury had also allocated an additional £26m over the next three years. "To put that in context, that's something like a ninefold increase in the money we have to fight illegal gambling", he said. "In my 20 years on executive boards of public bodies I've never known that kind of multiple from the Treasury ever before."

While much of the industry focus has been on offshore websites, Rhodes confirmed that this would allow the Commission to also focus on illegal land-based ventures, too.

Some numbers quickly followed, coming from the industry statistics published recently by the Commission, which revealed that the industry-wide GGY hit £16.8bn in FY2025. £4.8bn of that was from land-based sectors, including arcades, betting, bingo and casinos. Out of the 8,234 licensed premises in the UK, 1,415 of these were Adult Gaming Centres (AGC) and 5,825 were betting shops.

Rhodes followed up with a sobering reminder: "Whilst the GGY figures - both remote and non-remote - are showing increases on the year before, it's worth noting that the total number of premises is showing a modest decline and AGC premises are slightly down by 36 premises in total across GB. This is quite different to the story we sometimes hear in parts of the media."

"And these premises numbers are from the 2,179 gambling operators licensed in the GB market - itself a slight decline on the year before too. These figures paint the picture of a dynamic and competitive industry. One that sees the bricks and mortar economy still having a large and important role."

He then reminded those in attendance that the Commission wrote to all AGCs earlier this year to remind them about the importance of self-exclusion policies.

"Unfortunately, despite the warnings, some operators weren't taking their responsibilities seriously. So at the start of this month, we announced that we had taken decisive regulatory action," Rhodes continued. "Seven AGC operators have seen their operating licences immediately suspended this year for failing to be part of a self-exclusion scheme. While most of those licences have since been reinstated following clear steps to remedy failings, all operators concerned remain under investigation, which may result in further regulatory action being taken."

This is all the more important when you consider media coverage. Every business sector has its bad apples, but AGCs are consistently dragged by newspapers for the reportedly negative social effects they 'innately' enact. By failing basic self-exclusion procedures, these seven AGC operators are making it infinitely more difficult for the others to operate with respect.

"All of you who are making investments and making an effort to deliver high standards should expect to see the regulator take action against those who don't. Those who fail to do what they're required to do. They're not just letting their customers down, they're letting you down and they're leaving you open to criticism as a whole sector."

Rhodes then mentioned that the pre-consultation period for the technical standards for gaming machines received over 1,000 responses, which is a great level of engagement.

He went on to explain that most of the responses mentioned consolidating the existing 12 Gaming Machine Technical Standards (GMTS) into a single standard, updating them for greater clarity and also updating the GMTS and Gaming Machine Testing Strategy to remove obsolete material; and harmonising staff alerts, as different slot machine manufacturers use different protocols and systems.

"As the old saying goes, we are cursed to live in interesting times. The debate around gambling has probably never been more lively," he wrapped up with an ominous conclusion. "I genuinely believed, wrongly, after the White Paper it might actually calm down a bit after the long gestation period for the White Paper. I was wrong about that. And if anything it has intensified, some arguments are being relitigated."