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The UK’s Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has announced Grainne Hurst as its new Chief Executive Officer.

Grainne brings an unparalleled wealth of experience in the regulated betting and gaming sector, joining from global betting brand Entain, where she is currently Group Corporate Affairs Director.

The appointment comes as part of a wider restructuring of the BGC’s senior leadership, as current BGC CEO Michael Dugher moves to become Chair, replacing outgoing Chairman Brigid Simmonds OBE.

Grainne has held a number of senior roles in the land-based and online sectors, and brings a passion for increasing the number of high profile women in the industry, establishing the international arm of Global Gaming Women, where she is a board member, and oversaw the charity’s expansion to the UK, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

Over almost a decade with Entain, Grainne has led the company’s activities and relationships with government and the public sector and successfully spearheaded the company’s rebrand from GVC to Entain.

She is also a board member of the Entain Foundation and created and delivered Entain’s multi-award-winning global safer gambling strategy, Changing for the Bettor.

She was previously a special advisor to the UK government and studied at King’s College London and Queen Mary University in London.

Grainne Hurst said: “I am delighted to be joining the BGC at such a crucial time for its members and the millions of customers they serve. I am very grateful to Michael Dugher for everything he has done in establishing the BGC and I look forward to working closely with him to move it forward. My focus will always be on ensuring that we have a well regulated industry which protects customers and looks after their interests. The betting industry in the UK has world leading businesses and iconic brands and I will work hard to ensure they remain so. There is much to be done and I look forward to getting started.”

BGC CEO Michael Dugher added: “Grainne’s appointment is excellent news for BGC and our members. She won a very tough, external recruitment process and clearly demonstrated that she has not only mission critical knowledge and experience in the regulated industry – both online and in the land based sector – but also a strong vision for continued change and improvement at the BGC. Driving further progress on safer gambling, whilst ensuring that the tens of thousands of people who work in the industry continue to have their voices heard, will remain at the heart of everything we do.

“Grainne’s wealth of experience, impressive leadership qualities, formidable campaigning skills and acumen will be essential in working with all of our members to take the BGC to the next level. She is someone who is rightly widely respected across the industry and, as I step back to become Chair of the BGC, I am confident she will work well with our talented staff to make a decisive impact as our new CEO.”

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The Bulgarian Parliament has voted against proposed revisions to the Gambling Act, aimed at curbing the pervasive influence of gambling advertisements. The revisions were proposed by Kostadin Kostadinov of Vazrazhdane and were voted down in a 67-29 vote with 79 abstentions. They were backed by Vazrazhdane, BSP for Bulgaria and There Is Such a People.

The bill’s supporters blamed GERB and Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria for protecting gambling businesses.

The reasoning to the bill said that it sought to minimise the harm in society caused by gambling by curbing advertising and improving control, and strengthening the deterring function of the register of persons with gambling addiction. The revisions also proposed a fine for media operators violating the restrictions on advertising gambling.

Vazrazhdane argued that gambling addiction is a disease which affects one in three families in Bulgaria. They said that helping fight this is the main objective of the law and urged the other groups in Parliament to engage in a meaningful debate that would produce a good law.

Rumen Gechev of BSP for Bulgaria argued in favour of a total ban on gambling in Bulgaria. He said that advertisement of gambling has become aggressive and ubiquitous in recent years, “has got into the phones of children and youths, and this has got to stop”.

Lyuben Dilov of GERB-UDF argued that “the dramatic changes proposed in the Vazrazhdane bill” will deal a severe blow on municipal sporting institutions. He also said that a ban on advertising gambling will not solve the problem with the addiction. “Human nature should not be touched and changed,” he added.

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As Bacta celebrates its 50th year, President John Bollom has expressed the trade association’s admiration and congratulations to safer gambling charity YGAM which is also marking a milestone anniversary in 2024.

YGAM, the award-winning charity which was founded by Lee Willows in 2014 with a mission to use education as a tool to raise awareness and help safeguard against gaming and gambling harms, has made a key contribution to the safer gambling debate delivering numerous projects many of which have been supported by Bacta members.

Heralding YGAM’s impact John Bollom noted: “After YGAM was founded by Lee Willows, Anne and Keith Evans joined the fledgling organisation in 2016 following the tragedy of their son Alan Lockhart’s suicide after years of gambling addiction. YGAM quickly became a powerful agency for change working in partnership with a broad church of stakeholders including Bacta and many of our members.

“As chief executive of YGAM Lee was instrumental in engaging with the industry and demonstrating how it was possible to work in partnership without fear of compromising on core principles.

“YGAM’s success can be measured both culturally and in terms of what it has delivered.

“Since 2014 its portfolio of evidence-based programmes has reached over 3-million children and young people. In addition 17,000 delegates have been trained by YGAM including more than 11,000 teachers.

“It’s this contribution which has earned it the respect and admiration of stakeholders including Parliamentarians, academics and the low stake land-based gambling entertainment sector represented by Bacta.”