Statement of Principles for Gambling in Westminster
The City Council is required by the Gambling Act 2005 to publish a statement of the principles that it proposes to apply when exercising its functions under the Act. This statement must be published every three years. The first period of three years started on 31 January 2007. The Council is now into its second three year period following the publication of the revised Statement of Principles which took effect on the 4th January 2010.
Scope of the Statement
The Statement of Principles has been prepared bearing in mind the limitations on the discretion of the City Council imposed by the Act. This gives predominance to the Gambling Commission's codes and guidance.
Under the provisions of the Act, the City Council must aim to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as it thinks it is:
(a) in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission,
(b) in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission,
(c) reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives,
- preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime,
- ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way
- protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling
(d) in accordance with the City Council's statement of licensing principles subject to (a)-(c) above.
Current Statement of Principles
On 4th December 2009 the Council published its revised Statement of Principles for gambling (it's policy statement), which sets out the City Council's policy for dealing with applications and regulating gambling premises within Westminster. This revised policy statement can be reviewed below:
If you have questions about any aspect of this policy statement, please contact the licensing team on 020 7641 7829.
Previous Statements of Principles
A copy of the previous Statement of Principles can be downloaded using the link below.
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