January 20, 2020

In June 2018 the Government published a consultation on society lottery reform, seeking views on potential changes to sales and prize limits for large and small society lotteries. In July 2019, the Government announced that it intends to amend s 99 (3) of the Gambling Act 2005 to raise the per draw limit on lottery proceeds (ticket sales) from £4 million to £5 million, with the result that the maximum individual prize will raise from £400,000 to £500,000. In addition, the annual aggregate proceeds limit will rise from £10 million to £50 million.

The Commission is required by s 99 of the 2005 Act to attach conditions to lottery operating licences for the purposes of achieving the requirements of s 99. So the current limits, which are reflected in licence conditions attached to all society lottery operating licences, will also need to be amended to reflect the changes.

The reasons for changes to, and levels at which the limits will be set are explained in the Department for Digital, Culture Media & Sport’s responses document “Government response to the consultation on society lottery reform”.

The Commission says that it is also looking at the current regulatory requirements to ensure that issues related to the fair and open licensing objective, regarding transparency to consumers, are addressed. It is seeking views on strengthening some aspects of the licence conditions and codes of practice (LCCP) and producing guidance related to information available to consumers.

The consultation will be of interest to consumers of lottery products, licensees and prospective licensees, charities and organisations concerned with gambling and social responsibility and academics and organisations with an interest in lotteries. To access the consultation, click here.