UK: BGC chair Michael Dugher steps down after six years
Michael Dugher has stepped down as chair of the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), ending six years in senior leadership roles at the industry standards body.
The BGC said Mr Dugher would leave “with immediate effect” to take up a post at Brunswick Group, a global advisory firm, as Head of its UK Public Affairs Practice.
Mr Dugher, a former Labour MP and former shadow culture secretary, was the BGC’s founding chief executive for more than four years before becoming chair in April 2024.
Championing the industry
In a statement, Mr Dugher declared: “I am immensely proud of everything we have achieved at the BGC. Working with outstanding colleagues and members, we brought the industry together, embraced higher standards in safer gambling and championed an industry that employs tens of thousands of talented, hardworking, decent men and women in communities across almost every part of the UK.”
He added: “We also raised millions of pounds for so many good causes, particularly for racing and armed forces charities that have always been close to my heart.”
The council said he helped bring together “previously separate industry bodies representing land-based casinos, high street bookmakers and online betting, gaming and bingo”, and that he “steered the industry through the Government’s Gambling Act Review and the publication of the Gambling White Paper in 2023”.
Reflecting on that process, Mr Dugher criticised the tone of the debate around betting, arguing: “In an era when there is sadly so much ignorance and snobbery about betting – not helped, in my view, by the decline in the number of working-class people in Parliament – the BGC did a difficult job in navigating the industry through the previous Government’s gambling review.”
He said it “resulted in a White Paper that, though not without its challenges, avoided many of the most draconian and disproportionate measures advocated by anti-gambling prohibitionists.”
Industry reactions
Grainne Hurst, the BGC’s chief executive, said: “Michael’s contribution to the Betting and Gaming Council over the past six years has been exceptional. From the outset, he brought clarity of purpose, a trusted standing with policymakers and regulators, and a steadfast commitment to championing a responsible, well-regulated betting and gaming industry.”
In a LinkedIn message, Ms Hurst added: “Under his leadership, the BGC was firmly established as a credible standards body, uniting a diverse membership around stronger consumer protections and a shared determination to do the right thing, often going beyond regulatory requirements.”
The BGC said Mr Dugher’s tenure included the introduction of “20 new safer gambling codes containing 100 new standards”, while launching charity initiatives such as “the Britannia Stakes charity race at Royal Ascot and the Grand National Charity Bet”, which it said had “raised more than £6.5 million for a wide range of good causes”.
UK-based operators also recognised his contribution. Ian Proctor, chair of Flutter UK & Ireland, stated: “Michael worked tirelessly to help establish the BGC as a strong and authoritative body for the regulated industry. During a period of significant policy change, his experience and judgement were invaluable in supporting constructive engagement with Government and the regulator, including through the Gambling Act Review and the delivery of the White Paper.”
An industry under pressure
The council said Mr Dugher worked with the Gambling Commission on standards. He warned that the approach he backed was “increasingly at risk today given the very worrying growth in harmful gambling in the unregulated online black market.”
That warning lands at a time when black-market concerns are also being raised in the context of the recent gambling tax reform. If some consumers prefer to play on licensed and recommended new UK online casino sites, industry bodies have argued that higher costs and tighter controls can push players towards unlicensed operators instead of regulated brands. A YouGov poll for the BGC found that 65 percent of UK punters would consider using black market sites if taxes rise, while IFHA data showed unique UK traffic to 22 unlicensed racing websites surged by 522 percent since 2021 (versus 49 percent growth for legal sites).
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