The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has initiated its third consultation period to gain feedback and proposals to make gambling machines in the UK more secure and fair, a recommendation included in the White Paper on the Gambling Act Review.

This consultation period extends over 16 weeks, from 29 January until 20 May 2025. The UKCG is looking for input from consumers, the general public, and industry stakeholders (like those who manufacture or supply gambling machines) on gaming machine technical standards and the testing of these machines. The proposed measures are specifically designed to improve user safety and enhance regulatory clarity.

New Standards

To achieve these aims, the UKGC is looking to introduce five novel gaming machine standards, as well as social responsibility and licensing condition codes. These measures include:

• A monetary and time limit-setting function so players can better manage their spending.
• Integrating safe gambling messages into machines.
• Displaying session time and net position to ensure responsible gambling.

In addition, the UKGC wants to consolidate current technical standards to create a clearer framework and to amend the structure to comply with the Remote Gambling and Software Technical Standards.

Safety & Testing

While a lot of the current focus is on land-based gaming machines, online gambling remains a big part of the discussion and can also serve as guidance in terms of gambling safety and testing. For example, online platforms have long been subjected to regulatory oversight by the UKGC and other regulatory bodies. This oversight and enforced standards is to ensure transparency and fair gambling, as well as allowing players to find the highest-paying online casinos in the UK. By ensuring that payout information for every game is prominently displayed, players can make informed decisions and try to get better value for money when gambling online.

Tim Miller, UKGC Executive Director for Research And Policy, highlighted how important these changes are that aim to balance a viable industry with consumer protections. He said of the consultation period “We encourage stakeholders to provide evidence that will help assess whether the benefits to consumers are proportionate to the costs involved.”

The Gambling Act Review White Paper was published in April 2023, and operators, the public, and test houses are encouraged to comment during this consultation period. The aim of the paper is to update the UK’s gambling regulations under the understanding that technology and consumer needs have evolved.

Reforms

Previous gambling reforms included limits on online slot bets, as well as a statutory levy that will fund research into the potential impacts of gambling on society. Affordability checks on high rollers have also been tightened to ensure excessive losses are avoided.

The UKGC has been busy in 2025. Early in the year, the use of slam-shot and turbo features that increase gameplay speed has been banned, as has any audio or visual representations for returns below the player’s betting size.

Despite these transformations, several lawmakers are still unhappy with the sluggish speed of regulatory change.

Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group, Carolyn Harris, expressed her frustration with the ongoing consultation process, claiming that proposals should be immediately implemented.

However, amid these political criticisms and pressure, the UKGC believes that thorough stakeholder and public consultation is required to ensure regulations are effective.

The UKGC is in the process of reviewing feedback from the second consultation period, which ended in February 2024. This consultation focused on technical criteria for deposit limits, free bets, and protecting customer finances.