DCMS Advertises Again for Gambling Commission Chair With New Posting

The UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has advertised the vacant position of Chair at regulator, the Gambling Commission, for a second time, having initially published an advertisement for the role in April last year.

Charles Counsell has held the position of Interim Chair since February 2025, following the departure of previous Chair Marcus Boyle, who had held the position since September 2021.

After previously planning to appoint a new permanent chair when it first advertised for the role nine months ago, the DCMS is now making a second attempt to find a permanent successor to Boyle.

Change of plan

The Commission’s initial plan was for Counsell to hold the position of Interim Chair for nine months, before stepping away from the position in November 2025.

Counsell has been a Non-Executive Director at the Commission since September 2023. He was previously CEO of the Pensions Regulator from April 2019 to March 2023.

It is currently unclear as to why the DCMS was unable to fill the position previously. Betting.co.uk has reached out to the DCMS for comment. The application deadline is March 13 and the interview process is expected to conclude on May 11.

What the DCMS is looking for

The chosen candidate would be placed on a five-year contract with a salary of £59,950 in exchange for two days per week in the West Midlands. The required skills include commercial, communication, major projects, regulation and transformation.

The DCMS said in the job posting: “The next few years provide a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make gambling safer, fairer and crime free. A new Chair will help put the Commission in a prime position to grasp that opportunity in full.

“The new Chair will also support the government’s plan for change, with a regulatory environment that enables economic growth while protecting children and vulnerable people from being harmed by gambling.”

The Chair will be tasked with setting the overall direction, policy and plans for the Gambling Commission. They will also be required to work with diverse stakeholders, while also demonstrating the ability to ensure sufficient detachment to be seen as independent and driving standards within the industry.

Matters to oversee

With regards to regulation, this has been an important time for Counsell to fill in for the position, with the industry adapting to further implementation of the 2023 Gambling White Paper. In January, Ian Murray MP, Minister of State for the DCMS, called for all terms within the White Paper to be implemented before the UK has another gambling review.

The Gambling White Paper was one of the most significant publications in the history of gambling in the UK, setting out more than 60 proposals to update the country’s gambling laws.

Among the terms recommended were affordability checks, in an attempt to protect players spending a certain amount within a certain timeframe, improved identification checks, a statutory levy, and a cap on the maximum stakes on online slots at £5 for older adults and £2 for younger adults.

The new Gambling Commission chair will also oversee a process where many licensees will be considering their position in the UK following the implementation of increased online gambling taxes.

In April, remote gaming duty, paid on online casino bets, will increase from 21% of gross gaming yield (GGY) to 40%. In addition, general betting duty, paid on online sports betting, will rise from 15% to 25% in April 2027; bets on horseracing will be exempt.