334.Section 110 provides that operating licences are granted for an indefinite period. However, the Commission has power to introduce time limits for licences if it believes there is a regulatory need to do so. Therefore, the general position is that licences will not need to be renewed at any point. Section 116 gives the Commission the power to review, over time, the performance of licence holders and the operation of licence conditions.
335.First, under subsection (1) the Commission may review matters relating to a class of operating licence i.e. not an individual licence, but a type of licence. For example, the Commission could review the operation of all gaming machine general operating licences. The purpose will be to review the manner in which licensees, as a whole, carry on licensed activities, and particularly, how licensees comply with the conditions attached to the class of operating licence. The purpose of this type of review could be to consider whether any changes to general conditions on licences are needed.
336.Secondly, under subsection (2), the Commission has power to review any matter relating to an individual operating licence on any of three grounds:
If the Commission suspects that conditions of an operating licence are being breached;
If the Commission believes that the licence holder or any person connected with the gambling activities, has been convicted of a relevant offence in Great Britain or abroad; or
If the Commission for any reason:
suspects that the licence holder may be unsuitable to perform the licensed activities; or
thinks that a review would be appropriate.
337.The section makes it clear that a review can be carried out even if there is no suspicion or belief about the licence holder’s activities. This ensures that a licence could be reviewed solely on the grounds, for example, that it had been held for a long period of time, and that the Commission considered a review prudent.
338.In the event that the Commission decides to carry out a review of an individual licence there are procedural requirements to ensure that the licence holder can take part in the review (subsections (4) and (5)).