Members of the European Parliament have decided that rules governing on-line gambling across the EU should be laid down by the individual member states themselves.
 
A motion had been tabled last week calling for a pan European policy on the issue but a significant majority voted against such an approach.
 
The stance taken by the Parliament flies in the face of popular belief in Britain than Brussels wants a federated approach to all matters of European law.
 
It was decided that the EU internal market should not be taken as the basis for regulating the online gambling industry. Four hundred amendments were tabled to the report by Danish MEP Christel Schaldemose but the final compromise was approved by 32 votes to 10 with one abstention.

The report as adopted calls on the Council (which represents the Member States) to seek "a potential political solution" to the problems of online and traditional gambling and betting. Studies and proposals, submitted by the Commission at the request of the Council, could identify "common objectives" and a "common position" to enable action to be taken to solve the social and public order problems arising from cross-border online gambling such as gambling addiction and misuse of personal data.
 
Certain measures could be envisaged to tackle risks relating to illegal betting behaviour and match-fixing, says the report. It also backs the development of standards for online gambling as regards age limits, a ban on credit and other measures or information to protect vulnerable gamblers such as children and gambling addicts.

Regarding advertising, MEPs believe self-regulation is not enough. Instead they stress the need for both regulation and cooperation between industry and the authorities.

Practical solutions should also be examined for limiting the danger of betting large sums of money. A maximum amount per month that a person can spend on gambling could be laid down or on-line gambling operators could be obliged to make use of pre-paid cards that would be sold in shops, says an amendment tabled by Dutch MEP Toine Manders.

MEPs are concerned about the deregulation of gambling, which is by far the most important source of income for sports organisations in many Member States. They also note that bets taken by private operators are a form of commercial exploitation of sports events. They recommend that governments protect sporting competitions from any unauthorised commercial use and take steps to ensure fair financial returns to the benefit of all levels of professional and amateur sport.


Conservative MEP for the West Midlands Malcolm Harbour (UK), announced that a minority opinion would be tabled at the plenary vote - scheduled for the session of 9 to 12 March - because of divisions of a mainly national character, especially within his group. He himself had signed or co-signed most of a number of amendments putting the emphasis on compliance with internal market rules and judgments of the Court of Justice, but these were rejected.

The minority in question argues that gambling is an economic activity to which internal market rules should apply, notably freedom of establishment and the freedom to provide services, and that non-discriminatory access to national markets for operators who meet the requirements should be guaranteed by Member States under Articles 43 and 49 of the Treaty. It also believes that the dangers of on-line gambling, especially the consequences for consumers such as addiction, are unproven.

Despite further motions calling for the EU to take control of rules concerning online gambling across the trading bloc it seems that for now at least countries such as Britain will be free to make whatever rules they like in relation to the industry.

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