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Sports Betting

I welcome all right hon. and hon. Members to this debate, and I thank them for entering into the spirit of things. We touched upon some of the problems of sports betting a few months ago, but we have the opportunity today to consider the matter in some depth and to hear contributions from across the House. I see that some of the sharpest brains in the House are here—I say that in the nicest sense. I am prepared to take bets, from general elections down, but we can talk about that later. Sports betting is not a new phenomenon. It has been delimited for many years. Golf rules came in during the 17th century, because of alleged match fixing. Cricket came in during the 18th and 19th centuries, and again there was a bit of corruption here and there. I have a list of the various sports about which allegations have been made, some of which were proven and others not. They include football, baseball, boxing, basketball, American football, horse racing of course, snooker and so on. Betting goes on right across sport. It is a real concern. No one thinks for a minute that this is prevalent, but we must ensure that moves are made to prevent the odd event resulting in the police becoming involved, or the sporting organisations having to discipline the sports. The Gambling Commission was set up under the Gambling Act 2005. It aims to monitor betting patterns and possible corruption; and the Financial Services Authority has considered spread betting. Indeed, the commission has identified some 47 cases since its inception. Last year, I watched the Norwich-Derby game after a tip-off, but it proved hard to gain any evidence. The Football Association and others looked into the game, but they found some difficulty in accessing all the information. However, it was clear that large bets had been placed on the Asian market at half time. Serious things are going on, and we ought to be able to trace them and prevent them from happening again. We all love sport, and we want to ensure that it continues. I am flattered that so many people have been in touch to help me with this debate. They include bookmakers' organisations—the Association of British Bookmakers and the Remote Gambling Association, which are taking the matter seriously—the Gambling Commission itself; various individuals; and the Central Council of Physical Recreation and the Football Association. All of them have the deliberate aim of preventing such odd events—even one is too much—in sports that are loved across the nation and across the world. After our last debate, there was a move to consider the Accrington Stanley and Bury game. We cannot say much about it, as the case is sub judice. The FA is considering the matter, but five players allegedly put money on their team losing. That, of course, sours the whole process, not only for the fans but for everyone who loves sport.