Boris Johnson Resignation Blows UK Gambling Reforms Off Course – Casino.Org News

Posted on: July 7, 2022, 06:05h.

Last updated on: July 7, 2022, 06:47h.

Boris Johnson quit as British prime minister Thursday. He finally acknowledged that the mass resignation of senior MPs and aides in his own party over the past 48 hours had made his position untenable.

The final straw was Johnsons false insistence that he had been unaware of sexual misconduct allegations against a key ally when he appointed him to a major government role in February. The allegations against Chris Pincher surfaced after the MP was accused of drunkenly groping two men at a distinguished London private members club on June 29.

As of 10am UK time, 59 members of Johnsons Conservative Party had quit, many realizing that continued support of the prime minister amid snowballing unpopularity could signal career death.

It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister, said Johnson outside Number 10 this morning. In Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when it moves, it moves.

Thems the breaks, he added.

The chaos at the heart of government will almost certainly delay the publication of a white paper on gambling reforms, previously expected before July 22.

Thats not least because Chris Philp, the minister responsible for gambling, was one of the 59 who resigned.

Philp mentioned the white paper in his resignation speech.

The gambling review is with No 10 at the moment for final approval, containing strong measures to protect people from the ravages of gambling addiction, he said.

The paper is expected to recommend MPs legislate to introduce the most radical reforms of the UK online gambling industry since market liberalization in 2005. The industry is bracing itself for a significant tightening of controls on one of the most liberal regulated markets in the world.

It may have to brace itself a little longer. But in the meantime, its offering markets on guess what? the next British Prime Minister.

Johnsons resignation will trigger a contest to replace him as leader of the Conservative party. The winner will become prime minister without the need for a general election.

On Thursday, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace was installed as the bookies new favorite. Thats apparently based on a poll of party members by Tory news site ConservativeHome, although its not yet clear if Wallace even plans to stand for leadership. Nevertheless, he is currently around 3/1 to become the next PM.

Wallace is closely followed at 5/1 by Rishi Sunak, who resigned as chancellor of the Exchequer yesterday. Married to the daughter of an Indian billionaire, Sunak would be the UKs first racial-minority head of government.

Third favorite is former defense secretary and ardent Brexiteer Penny Mordaunt at 6/1. Mordaunt would be the UKs third female prime minister, but the first as far as we know to have once held a job as a magicians assistant.

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Boris Johnson Resignation Blows UK Gambling Reforms Off Course - Casino.Org News