(Jamma) “The laws of the federal states transposing and implementing the amendment of the first State Treaty on gambling in Germany must be notified under Directive 98/34/EC in their draft stage, provided that they contain technical standards and/or rules relating to information society services which fall within the scope of application of the Community directive”. So Michel Barnier, Commissioner for the Internal Market replied to questions from Rainer Wieland, of the European People's Party, which asked for information on the regularity of the procedures for implementing the new German gambling laws.
“The new German gambling law – said Commissioner Barnier – entered into force on 1 July 2012 and the German authorities are implementing the new provisions. The Commission follows the implementation process closely through a constructive dialogue with the German authorities in order to ensure compliance with EU rules.
However, it is up to the Member States, in accordance with the relevant case law of the CJEU, to determine both the organization and control of the gaming offer, and how gambling is to be performed on their territory. The public authorities that grant betting and gaming licenses still have the duty to respect the fundamental provisions of the Treaties, the principles of equal treatment and non-discrimination on the basis of nationality and the consequent obligation of transparency.
The Member States – concludes Barnier – establish the regulatory framework for the provision of gaming services by setting the objectives of their policy and define the level of protection to be pursued in the public interest. The assessment of the addictive potential of different games of chance is therefore primarily the responsibility of the national authorities. However, more research is needed in this area."
