The proposed ban on broadcast gambling ads in the Netherlands will most likely not go into effect on 1 January 2023 as originally planned.
In July, the Dutch Minister for Legal Protection Franc Weerwind submitted a proposal which, if approved, would prohibit operators from advertising products via television, radio and in public spaces, both indoor and outdoor.
The blog Gaming in Holland now reported that last Thursday (6 October) Weerwind had informed the Permanent Committee for Justice and Security of the Dutch Lower House that the proposed ban would be delayed by several months.One reason for the delay was that the Ministry is still processing the responses to the public consultation on the proposed rule change.
Only once this process is concluded, the Council of State can offer its advice on the new rules, the blog reports.
The Council of State is a constitutionally established advisory body in the Netherlands that consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political, commercial, diplomatic or military experience.
The Council of State was founded in 1531, making it one of the world’s oldest still-functioning state organisations, and to this day must be consulted by the cabinet on proposed legislation before a law is submitted to parliament.Gaming in Holland reports that the Council of State may also find that the proposed rule change requires new primary legislation rather than a simpler and quicker change in secondary legislation as originally planned.
The original proposal suggested that the ban would extend to event sponsorships from 1 January 2024 and to sports sponsorship from 1 January 2025.
Minister Weerwind also indicated that due to technical, legal and privacy considerations, the government would not seek to introduce cross-operator deposit limits for the time being.
Instead, each licensed online operator would be required to introduce an as yet unspecified maximum deposit limit for each individual player.