Camelot under fire from MPs over National Lottery franchise

CAMELOT is under pressure from MPs as the National Lottery franchise comes up for grabs over claims it is using its incumbent position to distort the bid process.

In particular, the MPs say it has taken out advertisements in The House Magazine, which reaches only MPs and Westminster staff, and put its own branding ahead of the Lottery, which is supposed to back good causes.

Richard Holden MP and Carolyn Harris MP have written to the Gambling Commission to raise their concerns.

They sit on the All Party Parliamentary Group on Gambling Related Harm and plainly think Camelot has serious questions to answer.

The letter, seen by the Standard, notes: “We have noticed there have been numerous instances when Camelot have announced initiatives that appear to conflate its role as operator with that of the National Lottery.”

They include partnerships with ITV and the Daily Mail.

The MPs add: “It’s unclear to us how an advertising campaign in The House Magazine….serves to promote the National Lottery in order to increase returns to good causes.”

Camelot has run the Lottery since inception in 1994 – a lucrative deal. The franchise will be re-awarded in September to run until 2023 with some rivals saying the government can’t expect future bids, a costly process, if Camelot wins again.

The Gambling Commission is already under fire over the collapse of the Football Index, a controversial scheme industry insiders say was doomed to fail.

Its collapse may have contributed to the departure of Commission CEO Neil McArthur.

The MPs letter adds: “We fear this is creating an unfair process that threatens the credibility of the National Lottery and you as a regulator. We are fearful that if the competition continues to allow the incumbent to mislead audiences as to its role in relation to good causes, it will lead to a situation where Camelot is awarded the licence for a fourth time and no credible bidders will be forthcoming in future competitions.”

This is why we am now seeking assurances from the regulator on how you will enforce the rules properly to ensure this is a fairand competitive process.”