In 2013, a gambler, Tarwinder Shokar, sued Ontario casino Caesar’s Windsor for allowing him to gamble and lose when, Shokar argued, the casino should have identified he was spending too much.
A lifetime ago, this would have been considered crazy. But not anymore, as the case is still being argued in court.
And it all comes down to regulations.
Regulations, otherwise known as those set rules and directives that help us maintain order and sanity in this very chaotic reality. And the UK government ensures their implementation in various industries. Either as a service operator or a mere consumer, a good knowledge of regulatory requirements is important to ensure you’re on the good side of the law.
In this article, we discuss 12 regulatory requirements across different industries in the UK.
A. Financial Services Industry —Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates the operations of the UK’s financial markets and some of its financial firms. Its jurisdiction includes all service providers offering any of the following services:
Their main objectives include the following:
All financial service firms under the FCA’s jurisdiction must meet the following regulatory requirements of the FCA to operate freely without sanctions in the UK.
1. Authorization
Financial service firms must be registered with the FCA. The authorization procedure varies depending on the firm type, and more details can be found on the FCA’s official website.
2. Supervision
In order to reduce actual and potential harm to consumers, the FCA oversees over 50,000 firms across the UK’s wholesale and retail financial services markets. These firms are expected to meet some threshold conditions, including the following:
The FCA has a long list of regularly updated regulatory requirements, which are specified in their handbook of rules and regulations. Firms are expected to stay up-to-date with these standards for free operations in the UK.
B. Gaming Industry
The United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC)regulates the UK gambling industry in order to protect people who play casino games and engage in any gambling activity.
The commission regulates the following gambling activities:
The following regulations govern all gambling activities in the UK.
3. Gamstop
Gamstop is a gambling self-exclusion scheme that acts as a tool for excluding one’s self from all gambling websites licensed by the UKGC. You’ll be unable to gamble on any UK gambling site if you sign up for Gamstop. The UKGC made it compulsory for all online gambling operators to participate in Gamstop. However, there are some operators like MegaDice, HeyBets, which are not on Gamstop (source: https://cryptonews.com/news/non-gamstop-casinos-uk.htm).
4. Gambling Act 2005
This regulation places a requirement on all gaming operators to ensure that gambling doesn’t become a source or is associated with crime or disorder or used to support crime.
5. The National Lottery (Amendment) Regulations, 2007
This is an updated version of the National Lottery Act 1994, which mandates that all lotteries that make up the national lottery be operated with due diligence in order to protect the interests of all participants.
6. The Proceeds of Crime Act, 2002
This regulatory requirement places the burden of noticing and reporting any attempt by a player to launder or gamble with illegal funds in a gambling establishment on the operator. As a result, gambling operators and their staff must report any suspected money laundering activity to the United Kingdom’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UKFIU).
7. Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations, 2017
Replacing the Money Laundering Regulations, 2007, the requirements of this regulation include the following:
8. Minimum Legal Gambling Age and Self-Exclusion Options for Problem Gamblers
Except for lotteries, scratch cards, and football pools, whose legal age is 16, 18 is the legal gambling age in the UK.
As such, all gambling operators running either a live or online establishment must ensure that they confirm that all players are above 18 by verifying their IDs or other necessary documentation before they are allowed to play.
Should an underage person slip through this check and gamble, their winnings can be withheld if they are later caught.
C. Workplaces — Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
The UK’s Department for Works and Pensions makes efforts to prevent work-related deaths and illnesses by sponsoring the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regulatory body.
The body regulates all UK workplaces, including the following, in order to ensure workplace health and safety.
The HSE’s regulatory requirements are specified in its Regulation of Health and Safety at Work document.
D. Food Industry — Food Standards Agency (FSA)
Food safety and hygiene standards are maintained in the UK by the regulations of the FSA. It also implements labeling and nutrition policies in Wales and Northern Ireland, respectively.
They are solely focused on ensuring that food consumers in the UK can buy food they trust and that food is safer, healthier, and more sustainable.
The following regulatory requirements govern their operations:
9. Food Standards Act, 1999
The Food Standards Agency was established based on the Food Standards Act in 1999. The act grants the agency the right to act on behalf of the consumer at any point in the food production and supply chain.
10. Food Safety Act, 1990
All food legislation in England, Wales, and Scotland is guided by the Food Safety Act 1990. The act specifies the expectations for all food businesses. These expectations encompass the mandate for food businesses to ensure food isn’t treated in a way that would be damaging to consumers, only sell food with the quality expected by consumers, and ensure that the labeling of food isn’t misleading.
E. Communication Service Industry — Office of Communications (Ofcom)
The Office of Communications (Ofcom) is the regulatory body in charge of the UK’s communications services.
They regulate the following service industries:
Ofcom’s regulations can be categorized into the following groups:
11. The General Conditions of Entitlement
These are the regulatory requirements for all electronic communications network service providers. These requirements can be categorized into the following major categories:
Details on each of these can be found on Ofcom’s official website.
12. Ethernet and Leased Lines
Ethernet and leased lines service network providers are regulated by the Wholesale Fixed Telecoms Market Review (WFTMR) 2021-26.
Other categories of regulations by Ofcom include the following:
Conclusion
Irrespective of the industry, most regulatory requirements are often focused on protecting the final consumer, preventing crime, and raising industry standards. Most regulatory standards and requirements are updated on an ongoing basis. So, it is important to stay updated to ensure regulatory compliance.
