National Lottery etc. Act 1993
National Lottery etc. Act1993
1993 CHAPTER 39
An Act to authorise lotteries to be promoted as part of a National Lottery; to make provision with respect to the running and regulation of that National Lottery and with respect to the distribution of its net proceeds; to increase the membership and extend the powers of the Trustees of the National Heritage Memorial Fund; to amend section 1 of the Revenue Act 1898 and the Lotteries and Amusements Act 1976; to amend the law relating to pool betting; and for connected purposes.
[21st October 1993]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part I
Authorisation and Regulation of the National Lottery
Preliminary
1 The National Lottery.
(1) In this Act ‘the National Lottery’ means all the lotteries that form part of the National Lottery, taken as a whole.
(2) A lottery forms part of the National Lottery if the following conditions are satisfied.
(3) The lottery must be promoted or proposed to be promoted—
(a) by the body licensed to run the National Lottery under section 5, or
(b) in pursuance of an agreement that has been made between that body and the lottery's promoter or proposed promoter.
(4) The promotion of the lottery must be authorised by a licence that has been granted to its promoter or proposed promoter under section 6.
2 Legality of lotteries forming part of the National Lottery.
(1) A lottery that forms part of the National Lottery shall not be unlawful.
(2) Schedule 1 contains amendments consequential on subsection (1).
3 The Director General of the National Lottery.
(1) There shall be an office the holder of which shall be appointed by the Secretary of State and known as the Director General of the National Lottery.
(2) Schedule 2 makes provision in relation to the Director General.
4 Overriding duties of the Secretary of State and Director General.
(1) The Secretary of State and (subject to any directions he may be given by the Secretary of State under section 11) the Director General shall each exercise his functions under this Part in the manner he considers the most likely to secure—
(a) that the National Lottery is run, and every lottery that forms part of it is promoted, with all due propriety, and
(b) that the interests of every participant in a lottery that forms part of the National Lottery are protected.
(2) Subject to subsection (1), the Secretary of State and the Director General shall each in exercising those functions do his best to secure that the net proceeds of the National Lottery are as great as possible.
(3) In subsection (2) ‘the net proceeds of the National Lottery’ means the sums that are paid to the Secretary of State by virtue of section 5(6).
The licensing system
5 Licensing of a body to run the National Lottery.
(1) The Director General may by licence authorise a body corporate to run the National Lottery.
(2) Only one body may be licensed under this section at any one time.
(3) The Director General shall not grant a licence under this section unless an application in writing, containing such information as he has specified as necessary for enabling him to determine whether to grant it, has been made to him by such date as he has specified.
(4) The Director General shall not grant such a licence unless he is satisfied that the applicant is a fit and proper body to run the National Lottery.
(5) In determining whether to grant such a licence, the Director General may consider—
(a) whether any person who appears to him to be likely to manage the business or any part of the business of running the National Lottery under the licence is a fit and proper person to do so, and
(b) whether any person who appears to him to be likely to be a person for whose benefit that business would be carried on is a fit and proper person to benefit from it.
(6) A licence under this section shall include a condition requiring the licensee to pay to the Secretary of State at such times as may be determined by or under the licence such sums out of the proceeds of lotteries forming part of the National Lottery as may be so determined.
(7) A licence under this section may include a condition requiring the licensee to make such arrangements as may be determined by or under the licence for securing that, in circumstances specified in the licence, such sums as may be so determined are paid to the Director General for distribution to participants in lotteries forming part of the National Lottery.
6 Licensing of bodies to promote lotteries.
(1) The Director General may by licence authorise a body corporate to promote lotteries as part of the National Lottery.
(2) A licence under this section shall specify the lotteries, or descriptions of lottery, the promotion of which it authorises.
(3) The Director General shall not grant such a licence unless an application in writing, containing such information as he has specified as necessary for enabling him to determine whether to grant it, has been made to him.
(4) The Director General shall not grant such a licence unless he is satisfied that the applicant is a fit and proper body to promote lotteries under the licence.
(5) In determining whether to grant such a licence, the Director General may consider—
(a) whether any person who appears to him to be likely to manage the business or any part of the business of promoting lotteries under the licence is a fit and proper person to do so, and
(b) whether any person who appears to him to be likely to be a person for whose benefit that business would be carried on is a fit and proper person to benefit from it.
(6) A licence under this section may include a condition requiring the licensee to obtain the Director General's approval of the rules of any lottery before the lottery is promoted under the licence.
7 Licences under sections 5 and 6: further provisions.
(1) A licence granted under section 5 or 6 shall be in writing and shall specify the period for which (subject to being revoked or suspended) it is to have effect.
(2) Such a licence may include such conditions (in addition to those required or authorised by section 5 or 6) as the Director General considers appropriate and in particular may include conditions requiring the licensee—
(a) to obtain the consent of the Director General before doing anything specified, or of a description specified, in the licence;
(b) to refer matters to the Director General for approval;
(c) to ensure that such requirements as the Director General may from time to time determine or approve are complied with;
(d) to provide the Director General at times specified by him with such information as he may require (including, if the information is of a description specified in the licence, information for publication by him);
(e) to allow the Director General to inspect and take copies of any documents of the licensee, including any information kept by the licensee otherwise than in writing, relating to the National Lottery or a lottery forming part of it;
(f) where such information is kept by means of a computer, to give the Director General such assistance as he may require to enable him to inspect and take copies of the information in a visible and legible form or to inspect and check the operation of any computer, and any associated apparatus or material, that is or has been in use in connection with the keeping of the information;
(g) to do such things (and, in particular, to effect such transfers of property or rights) as the Director General may require in connection with the licence ceasing to have effect and the grant of a licence to another body.
(3) In subsection (2)(e) and (f) ‘the Director General’ includes any representative of the Director General, as well as any member of his staff, who has been authorised by him (whether generally or specially) to make such an inspection.
(4) Conditions in a licence granted under section 5 or 6 may impose requirements to be complied with by the licensee after the licence has ceased to have effect.
(5) On the granting of a licence under section 5 or 6, the licensee shall pay to the Director General a fee of such amount as the Secretary of State may by order prescribe.
(6) All fees received by the Director General by virtue of subsection (5) shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.
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