To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many betting shops in each region have been visited as part of the Gambling Commission Annual Visit Programme since September 2007; how many such shops in each region were found to be at risk of non-compliance with each of the Gambling Commission’s three licensing objectives; what enforcement action has been taken; and if he will make a statement. (219545)

[holding answer 17 July 2008]: The Gambling Commission has provided a regional breakdown of the number of betting premises visited as part of their compliance programme. Additional visits may have been made outside of the compliance programme to other betting premises to consider, for example, a specific complaint.

In many cases, time has been taken as part of an initial compliance visit to further educate operators about compliance with the requirements of the Gambling Commission’s licence conditions and codes of practice.

Repeat visits have then been used to establish whether appropriate steps have been taken.

To date, there have been nine referrals of bookmakers licensed to operate betting shops for further investigation under section 116 of the Gambling Act by the Gambling Commission’s enforcement team. For operational reasons it would not be appropriate to go into the detail of these ongoing cases. If formal regulatory action is taken, details will be published on the Gambling Commission’s website at:

www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk