Bookmaker Ladbrokes has moved to establish a new social responsibility committee in order to help the firm’s board oversee the delivery of a socially responsible approach to providing betting and gaming.
Senior independent director John Kelly will chair the new committee while non-executive director Christine Hodgson, chairman Peter Erskine and chief executive Richard Glynn will also be in attendance.
Sitting at least three times a year, the board will monitor and report to the board on the adherence to and development of responsible gambling policy across the business.
The new committee, which Ladbrokes first announced in February of this year, will also assess performance against other key social responsibility targets.
Company experts will regularly attend the committee, which will also work alongside the remuneration committee on developing key performance indicators that will be used to ensure that responsible gambling is reflected in executive remuneration.
“We have always placed responsible gambling and social responsibility at the heart of our business and the establishment of the committee formalises this approach and reinforces its importance to the future of the business,” Erksine said.
“It is clear that trust in bookmakers has been impacted by negative publicity and lobbying in the last year, and while we may believe that much of the concern is ill founded, we accept that it is only by our actions will be able to win it back.
“The social responsibility committee, chaired by John Kelly with a wealth of experience and knowledge of the gambling industry, is a significant step in this process.”
