The UK Gambling Commission has reiterated its stance on its ‘fair, open and robust’ fourth National Lottery licence competition following the announcement that Camelot would take the regulator to High Court after Allwyn was named the preferred applicant.
Camelot made the announcement last Friday, with CEO Nigel Railton lambasting the UKGC decision as ‘badly wrong’ after questioning its handling of the competition.
The current incumbent’s key issues were disclosures that UKGC had changed the rules of its evaluation phase to favour Allwyn’s bid. According to reports, the UKGC originally placed a 15% risk factor into the assessment of the bids, but according to Camelot, it was removed from the process.
The Commission has responded to such criticism, standing by the process of the competition, and is confident that the High Court would agree with its assessment.
“We regret Camelot’s decision to bring legal proceedings following the outcome of a highly successful competition for the fourth National Lottery licence,” a statement from the Commission read.
“The competition and our evaluation have been carried out fairly and lawfully in accordance with our statutory duties, and we are confident that a court would come to that conclusion.”
Moving forward, UKGC maintains that it will work with Camelot to ensure a smooth transition between the third and fourth licence, which is due to take place in February 2024.
The Commission concluded: “Our priority is to continue to work to implement our decision and ensure a seamless and timely transition to the next licence, for the benefit of participants and good causes.
“These proceedings will not help that but we trust that Camelot will honour its obligations as the current licensee to cooperate in that transition, and we will continue to use the tools available to us to facilitate that process.”
