National lottery: regulator will ask court to enforce Allwyn licence award

theguardian.com:

The gambling regulator will ask a court to force through its award of the next national lottery contract to the Czech-owned newcomer Allwyn, in a move critics say risks depriving good causes of up to £800m.

The Gambling Commission awarded the fourth national lottery licence to Allwyn earlier this year, triggering an immediate legal challenge from the incumbent Camelot and the media tycoon Richard Desmond, who also lost out in the competition for the lucrative licence.

The losing bidders are taking their case to the high court in October, with the Gambling Commission barred from moving forward with preparations to transfer the licence to Allwyn in the meantime.

On Wednesday, lawyers for the regulator will ask a high court judge to remove the temporary block that prevents it from signing an “enabling agreement” with Allwyn, which they will say risks delaying the transition and endangering payments to good causes.

But a source familiar with the legal battle said it was the regulator’s haste to push through Allwyn’s licence that risked diminishing payments to charities and sporting institutions.

They said the commission’s request to lift the block would, if successful, make it all but impossible to reverse the award to Allwyn, ultimately owned by the Czech billionaire Karel Komárek.

Camelot, its technology supplier IGT and Desmond would still go ahead with legal challenges but would effectively be suing for damages, rather than for the decision to be overturned.

The combined damages claim could cost the regulator up to £800m, they said, including costs incurred during the lengthy bid process.

Camelot would also seek compensation for income it would have made from running the lottery between 2024 and 2034.

“The Gambling Commission is