Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will publish the basis upon which the Gambling Commission renewed the Camelot UK Lotteries Limited license to run the National Lottery in June 2020.

In order to facilitate the competition for the next licence to run the National Lottery and ensure a smooth transition between the third and fourth licences, the current National Lottery licence contains provisions through which it can be extended by the Gambling Commission by up to one year, through two six-month extensions. Any extension will be on the existing terms of the licence.

In May 2020, the Gambling Commission announced that they would be triggering the first of these extensions to accommodate a delay to the launch of the competition for the next licence due to concerns expressed by interested applicants about the challenges posed by the Covid 19 pandemic. The updated third licence and a notice setting out the decision behind the extension can be found on the Gambling Commission’s website.

The competition launched successfully in August 2020 and the Gambling Commission are currently reviewing initial applications. The next licence will start in August 2023.