EU Shifts Stance On Online GamblingEuropean Parliament Urges Harder Line On Countries Which Ignore EU Law |
|
The European Parliament today voted to adopt a new report which urges a harder line on harmonizing online gambling law across the European Union.
Among the recommendations in the report, drafted by German MEP Jurgen Creutzmann, are a common set of rules for consumer protection in the realm of online gambling across the continent.
This is a definite shift away from the previous stance of supporting the status quo and allowing online gambling law to be decided at national level and includes a move towards a framework directive, formal cooperation between national regulators and more consistent use of infringement procedures by the European commission.
Sigrid Ligné, Secretary General of the EGBA welcomed the report saying, “This vote constitutes a very welcome shift in the position of the European Parliament. Time is of the essence given that it is precisely now that Member States are pushing ahead and reregulating their national online gambling markets.
“Today the Commission has received political support to initiate EU actions. But any EU level action can take years to be adopted and this cannot be a pretext for inaction against Member States that infringe EU law. As the guardian of the Treaties, the Commission must act to curb further fragmentation of the Internal Market by consistently declaring protectionist national regimes to be incompatible with EU law.”
A number of EU countries are currently in the process of following France and Italy in regulating their online gambling markets including Denmark, Spain and Germany.
Copyright © 2001-2024
CardPlayer.com. All rights reserved.
