Online self-exclusion system delayed until spring

The launch of the national online self-exclusion scheme Gamstop is being delayed to give operators more time to prepare for its implementation.

The scheme, which allows users suffering from gambling problems to self-exclude from all online gambling operators licensed by the Gambling Commission in a single step, was due to be brought in by the end of this year but has been put back until the spring.

When the government published its consultation on the recommendations stemming from its gambling review on Tuesday it welcomed the creation of Gamstop and called for it to be "completed at the earliest opportunity".

Remote Gambling Association chief executive Clive Hawkswood said: "Obviously we’d like it up and running as soon as possible, but it’s essentially a tech project and implementation targets routinely have to be adjusted to deal properly with emerging issues.

"The most important thing is that when it does go live that it works well and that all operators have had ample opportunity to integrate it into their systems.

"As being part of a national self-exclusion system will be a clear licensing condition we need to ensure that all companies, and not just the largest ones, have had the chance to prepare for it.

"This additional period will provide the time to do that and the Gambling Commission have acknowledged that it is a reasonable step to take."

The government said this week that it wanted the industry to "promote awareness of the scheme and do more to increase the take up of this and other responsible gambling tools that are available".

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