This is a report on the House of Commons Committee Stage of the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Bill. It complements Research Paper 13/55 prepared for the Commons Second Reading.
Remote gambling operators currently need a licence in Britain only if they have equipment located here. The Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Bill would move the regulation of remote gambling to a ‘point of consumption’ basis so that all remote operators would need a licence from the Gambling Commission to enable them to transact with British customers and advertise in Britain. The Government believes this will increase protection for British customers as well as enabling British-based operators to compete on an equal footing with other remote operators.
Prior to July 2012, video (or “computer”) games were classified under two systems: (voluntarily) under the Pan-European Game Information (PEGI) scheme and (in certain cases, compulsorily) by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). In response to recommendations in the Byron Review on child safety, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport consulted on options for strengthening classifications.
The Draft Gambling (Licensing & Advertising) Bill would amend the Gambling Act 2005 so that remote gambling would be regulated on a point of consumption basis, rather than point of supply (as at present).
This note gives an overview of the transport planning for the Games and summarises the performance of the London transport network during the Games period.
Olympic Britain tells the story of the profound economic and social change in the UK since the two previous London Olympics, in 1908 and 1948, using statistics and expert analysis. The book can also be browsed using the Parliament website at www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/olympic-britain/
This note sets out the VAT treatment of construction work and the UK's discretion in setting VAT rates with respect to European VAT law, before discussing the debate there has been on cutting VAT on historic building repair and recent proposals to withdraw the zero rate that applies to alteration work on listed buildings.
This note provides brief details about the ongoing inquiries and investigations associated with phone hacking and the various reports produced. It also gives details of the legislation regarding relevant offences and provides links to timelines of events.
This Note provides a brief overview of systems of press regulation in a number of foreign countries. Where possible, it details the sanctions available to the regulator in the event that a newspaper breaches a voluntary or statutory code of industry practice. If there is an established mechanism for the arbitration of press complaints, this is noted.
Following the discovery of widespread “phone-hacking” by journalists at The News of the World and other British newspapers, the Prime Minister, David Cameron, established in July 2011 a multi-part inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the press. Lord Justice Leveson was appointed as Chairman of the Inquiry. The first part (or “module”), which concluded its public hearings on 9 February 2012, concentrated on the relationship between the press and the public. Much of the material quoted in this Library Note comes from the evidence presented to this module (the first of four), but the Note will be updated periodically to take account of evidence presented at later modules.
Ukraine is due to host the Euro2012 football competition jointly with Poland from 8 June to 1 July. Ukraine's human rights record has led to calls for a boycott.
After winning the 2011 competition in Düsseldorf, Azerbaijan will be hosting the Eurovision Song Contest from 22 to 26 May 2012 in the capital, Baku, despite calls for a boycott.