The Gambling Commission’s leadership team is facing a new shake-up as Tim Miller, its Executive Director overseeing policy and enforcement, departs the regulator after a decade.
Miller took to LinkedIn this morning to announce that he would be leaving the Commission, concluding what he described as “the most enjoyable and fulfilling part of my career so far”.
The resignation comes at a time of real uncertainty for UK gambling’s regulatory future and policy direction, implementing the generational reforms sought by the Gambling Review’s White Paper.
“The Commission has been the most enjoyable and fulfilling part of my career so far and I’ve been so lucky to work with such brilliant people who care deeply about getting regulation right,” Miller wrote on LinkedIn.
“But for me, 10 years always felt like the right point to take on a new challenge.”
UK gambling’s regulatory crossroads
Miller’s departure comes as the UK gambling industry asks serious questions about its regulatory future amid adjustment to a new tax regime introduced in April this year and with the recommendations of the 2023 Gambling Act review White Paper still being implemented.
Changes around bonusing and marketing are now well entrenched, but the more controversial measures of Financial Risk Assessments (FRAs) – known throughout the industry as affordability checks – are still yet to be fully implemented, and are still being fiercely opposed by both the betting industry and horse racing.
The regulated industry is also battling against illegal gambling, a fight the Commission is taking an active role in alongside the government’s Illegal Gambling Taskforce.
But it seems that Miller may not be at the Commission in any capacity by the time it tackles these challenges or implements FRAs, as he is set to leave in September.
“I have worked at the Commission longer than anywhere else during my career and have found it the most rewarding and fulfilling role,” Miller said.
“In large part this has been due to the amazing and dedicated colleagues that I’ve had the pleasure to work alongside. That’s what made it a hard decision to leave but after ten years I felt ready for the next challenge.”
The end of Miller’s gambling journey?…
Miller joined the UK Gambling Commission in 2016 under the leadership of Sarah Harrison, tasked with developing a new evidence-led system to strengthen the use of research and insights to shape gambling governance and improving oversight of licensed operators.
Key projects saw Miller establish the Commission’s Digital Advisory Panel to strengthen its understanding of emerging technologies and support the overhaul of its digital systems.
Miller further championed the development of GamProtect as the industry’s cross-operator data-sharing initiative to form a “single eye of the customer”. This enabled participating licensees to identify and voluntarily restrict customers exhibiting severe indicators of gambling-related harm.
This came after a career which had already spanned a myriad of public sector roles, including as a Casework Adviser for The Law Society of England and Wales, Head of Public Affairs at the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, and Head of Policy and Communications for the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
Between 2013-2016, he had served as a Member of the Advisory Board for the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny (CfGS) – his last role before becoming Executive Director at the Commission.
Miller’s exact next step is uncertain, but it appears he will remain in the regulatory field.
In his social post, the departing director shared that he will be “working internationally with a number of governments, regulators and organisations that are focused on supporting the development of well-regulated and competitive markets”.
“More on that later in September after my last day at the Commission,” he signed off.
New leadership, same challenges for Gambling Commission
Miller’s departure comes just four months after the Commission’s Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Rhodes, stepped down from his position.
The Commission will now have to take on the fight against the black market and the implementation of FRAs with a new-look leadership team.
A key member of that may be Sarah Gardner, Acting Chief Executive of the Gambling Commission, who described Miller’s tenure as Executive Director as “outstanding”.
“Tim has provided outstanding service to the Commission for ten years,” she said.
“I would like to thank Tim for his significant contribution to gambling regulation and wish him every success in the future.”
Towards the end of his tenure, Miller was in the public eye regularly to condemn Big Tech firms – notably Meta – on their inaction against the black market.
Many mainstream social media platforms, from Instagram to X and YouTube to Kick, have seen an infestation of illegal gambling advertising – something which Miller has regularly been quick to criticise.
This criticism came as recently as this month, when he appeared on the iGaming Daily Podcast and stated: “If they don’t play their role – and frankly they’re not at the moment – it massively undermines the efforts that the rest of us are putting in place.”
However, the Commission’s lack of action against the black market has also been widely lambasted by other figures in the licensed industry, including executives from firms including Entain and Flutter Entertainment, as well as the industry body for UK betting and gaming – the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC).
Speaking to industry leaders at the BGC Summit in March, Miller admitted that UK gambling needed a settlement period for the new laws and compliance brought in by the White Paper in which “the sector needs to get-off the regulatory treadmill”.
As stands, the Commission seeks to oversee the pending implementation of the Gambling Review’s protection and compliance measures whilst operating without a permanent Chief Executive, Chair or Director of Policy during one of the most critical periods in UK gambling history.
Article contributions from Ted Menmuir and Ted Orme-Claye
