Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Football Index Collapse

Thursday 18 November 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Gambling Commission revoked BetIndex's operating licence and referred the company to the insolvency service for potential breaches of insolvency or fraud.
  • The Government commissioned a report by Malcolm Sheehan QC to understand complex betting propositions and ensure better protections for customers.
  • Wind-up proceedings are underway for those who lost money to BetIndex.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Liz Twist Lab Blaydon and Consett
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

Football Index collapsed, affecting many constituents who lost substantial amounts of money. The Gambling Commission revoked BetIndex's operating licence.

Question

What steps the Government is taking to help ensure that those responsible for the collapse of Football Index are held to account.

Answer from Chris Philp

The Gambling Commission has revoked BetIndex's operating licence and senior members of that company have surrendered their personal management licences. The Gambling Commission has also referred the company to the insolvency service to consider whether the directors breached insolvency or even fraud laws.

Answered
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Q2 Liz Twist Lab Blaydon and Consett
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

Many constituents have lost substantial amounts of money on the Football Index. There is a need for better understanding and protection against such complex betting propositions.

Question

Will the Minister explain further what is being done to help the Gambling Commission to understand these complex betting propositions in order to ensure better protections for customers, such as my constituents?

Answer from Chris Philp

The Government commissioned a detailed report by Malcolm Sheehan QC that was published towards the end of September. The report looked to ensure that all the relevant lessons are learnt, so that people who gamble are protected. Regarding those who lost money to BetIndex, the wind-up proceedings are ongoing at the moment and it is likely that some amounts will be available to be reimbursed to creditors, which would include customers.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not provide specific details on how the Government is helping the Gambling Commission understand complex betting propositions beyond commissioning a report.

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