Finnish government officials question roadmap report into gambling reform

Taneli Puumalainen, head of department, and Mari Pajula, a special expert at the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (STM), have questioned the Ministry’s initial report on a new gambling regulatory system for the Finnish market.

The duo did commend the report however, acknowledging that it identifies many of the developmental needs of new gambling policy and contains a lot of material for the next stage of the policy creation process.

But, despite this approval, they highlighted concerns that the report “does not provide enough information to outline the gambling system of the future” and emphasised what they believe should be the most vital focus for the policy content.

They commented: “The core goal of gambling policy is to combat harm caused by gambling, and too much focus on increasing market share in the development of gambling policy would be downright destructive in terms of harm.”

The officials went on to say that while the report does outline a possible future licence system, it crucially fails to state how the current system could be improved, which would be necessary when determining the right system going forward.

The officials further suggested Finland may benefit from looking at the way Norway conducts its exclusivity system.

“Norway has begun to develop an exclusivity system with a model that strictly limits both the monopoly’s game supply and the availability of gambling games outside the system. Research shows this is the most effective way to prevent and reduce harm.

“The results can be seen at least in the channelling. In the most recent estimates by H2 Gambling Capital, the amount of money played outside the system has dropped from €600m to €200m in Norway,” the pair concluded.

The officials ended their commentary by suggesting the possibility that governmental revenue income derived from gambling could ultimately decrease with the transition to the licensing system proposed.

They said: “According to the analysis, the government’s income would not increase in the licence model but would more likely be lower than in the exclusive model.

“The report does not give a direct recommendation on switching to a licensing system. This is good because the actions that best serve the goals of gambling policy must be weighed carefully. Hopefully, future decision making will find the patience to develop a data-based gambling policy. It is possible to assess and implement the necessary measures in the coming government term.

“You shouldn’t stay put, but you shouldn’t take a stealthy start, and you shouldn’t take corners straight, we started from the crossroads of the gambling system painted by the working group in any direction,” they concluded.

Finland currently operates a monopoly-based system for gambling, with state approved operator Veikkaus leading the market, however discussions have been ongoing about switching this to a licensing model with both politicians and operators indicating their support.