Poker News

BBPA to ask for pub poker games

2006-11-24 16:02:42

The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has said that it intends to lobby the government to ease rules surrounding gambling in pubs.

However, the association will seek a cap of around £10 per session, as it looks to introduce poker games under the banner of entertainment rather than a high-stakes gambling venture.

The news comes on the back of the government's new gambling act, due to come into force next year, which allows exceptions to its rules to be made for selected activities in pubs and clubs.

Poker has fast become the new hobby of choice for large numbers of UK residents, with their interest fuelled by the ever-increasing popularity of online gambling. Such is the popularity that some pubs are thought to be risking losing their licenses by holding illegal poker evenings.

"Our view at the moment is that poker could be played for limited stakes. We may need some framework in which we can play poker in pubs without falling foul of the law. It's quite conceivable that we might have a voluntary code," said Martin Rawlings, BBPA director of pubs and leisure, told the Morning Advertiser.


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