ACPO Angered By Suggestion Of Money Laundering Exemption For 'Super Casinos'

by Robin Pilgrim, LawAndTax-News.com, London

02 November 2004

According to a report in the Sunday Times, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) has condemned proposals to loosen the identification requirements for gamblers undertaking transactions involving more than £700 in the United Kingdom.

Reporting on the eve of the second reading of the government's new Gambling Bill, the Sunday Times alleged that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has been approached by leading US casino groups asking that the limit be increased to the $10,000 (£5,450) level currently in place in the United States, and that the Department has been open to such approaches.

Explaining the reasoning behind the submissions made by the ACPO to the government, an unnamed official told the Sunday Times that:

"The increase in potential jackpots will make casinos the ideal place to launder cash. It is important the rules are maintained to discourage criminals."

The newspaper also recently revealed that the casino owners had been promised that the tax on gaming would be cut from 40% to between 15% and 20%, but that Chancellor Gordon Brown was unaware that such an offer had been made.

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