An exception is made only for those jurisdictions that proved that they meet the requirements set by the Gambling Act 2005 and listed in a special guidance document,[1] issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
According to this document, the government or other authority of those countries, territories or jurisdictions that wish to advertise their gambling services in the UK, have to submit representations to the Secretary of State.
[2] These rules came into force on September 1, 2007, and, according to James Purnell, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport at that time, introduced "one of the most rigorous regulatory regimes anywhere in the world.
This information led to further criticism from Steve Donoughue, as he insisted that insufficient research was conducted by the authorities responsible for adding the countries to the whitelist.
[5] The white list system is being disputed by the Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt who wants to stop non-UK licensed companies from promoting their activities in the UK.