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17 Nov 2008 : Column 8W—continued
Departmental Recruitment
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people recruited by his Department in 2007-08 were aged over (a) 55 years and (b) 60 years; and what percentage this represented of the number of new recruits in each case. [235248]
Mr. Sutcliffe: As the values involved are less than five in DCMS standard statistical practice prevents us from releasing this information to protect individuals' identities.
Football: Debts
Mr. Kilfoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will bring forward legislative proposals to (a) regulate the debt of professional football clubs and (b) regulate the ownership of professional football clubs, with particular reference to foreign ownership. [235992]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Neither the Secretary of State nor I are currently considering any legislation to regulate the debt or the ownership of professional football clubs.
However, I understand that these issues are of concern to the public and I have therefore sought the views of the football authorities on these and other issues. I look forward to receiving their response.
Gambling: Regulation
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 21 July 2008, Official Report, columns 805-06W, on gambling, what steps the Gambling Commission has taken in respect of those gambling operations which failed its mystery shopper tests; if he will place in the Library a list of those organisations which have failed the tests to date; how many such tests have been conducted to date; how many remote gambling operations have failed the tests; and in which jurisdictions those remote organisations are based. [234966]
Mr. Sutcliffe: A pilot mystery shopping exercise was undertaken in the summer of 2007 on remote sites operated by prospective licensees and others. The Commission also conducts an ongoing programme of mystery shopping visits to remote gambling websites as part of its wider compliance effort for licensed remote gambling operators. The Commission expects to conduct further testing of operators licensed in other jurisdictions but to date all of those tested since 1 September 2007 under the provisions of the Gambling Act 2005 are operators licensed in Great Britain.
In instances where deficiencies are identified, the Commission engages in further testing and may require operators to respond to our compliance findings in writing or conduct formal compliance visits depending on the circumstances. All of the licensed operators identified as having questions over their procedures in the pilot study undertaken last summer were found to have effective measures in place in our more recent testing.
The Commission has the power to impose a more serious regulatory sanction on any licensed operator in the remote gambling sector but has not yet had reason to do so.
The Commission has advised me that by disclosing the names of websites visited it would compromise transparent communication between the regulator and regulated community, prejudicing the Commission’s ability to investigate instances of non-compliance. In the light of this advice, it would not be appropriate to provide this information.
Gambling: Young People
Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what research the Gambling
Commission has undertaken on age verification procedures in jurisdictions which have remote online gambling companies allowed to advertise in the UK. [234949]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Gambling Commission has not undertaken specific research relating to age verification procedures in jurisdictions permitted to advertise remote gambling in the United Kingdom. However, the Commission has provided advice to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on certain technical aspects in relation to applications received by the Department to be allowed to advertise gambling in the UK.
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