Claudia Van Bruggen to lead Dutch Gambling overhaul..
Summary
The Netherlands’ new centrist coalition (D66, CDA and VVD) has confirmed Claudia Van Bruggen as State Secretary for Legal Protection and Prison Services, and she will spearhead a comprehensive overhaul of Dutch gambling regulation. Van Bruggen will work under Justice Minister David van Weel to replace the Remote Gambling Act (KOA) with a new Gambling Act following concerns raised by industry stakeholders, independent evaluations and parliamentary motions. The reform agenda emphasises strengthened player protection, tighter advertising rules, licence re-examination, enhanced enforcement and measures to reduce links to the black market. The overhaul will also intersect with wider social and justice reforms, including debt, bankruptcy, legal aid and data-privacy changes.
Key Points
- Claudia Van Bruggen (D66) appointed State Secretary for Legal Protection and Prison Services; she will lead the gambling regulation overhaul.
- The new Cabinet is a tri-party coalition of D66, CDA and VVD; Van Bruggen reports to Justice Minister David van Weel (VVD).
- The overhaul aims to replace the Remote Gambling Act (KOA), which has been criticised following independent evaluations in 2023–24.
- Core priorities: stronger player-protection, clearer duty-of-care for operators, improved problem-gambling prevention and crisis/suicide-intervention measures.
- Policy measures under consideration include advertising blackouts, licence reapplications under stricter scrutiny and enhanced enforcement/supervision powers.
- Reform will be linked to broader social policy changes (debt and bankruptcy law, legal-aid, privacy and data protections) reflecting digital risks and financial harms.
- Stakeholders such as the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) and addiction clinics have urged suicide-prevention and crisis protections be central to any new framework.
Context and Relevance
The KOA regime, introduced in October 2021, has been under sustained criticism and was deemed inadequate by policymakers and industry actors after follow-up evaluations. The decision to rewrite the framework signals a major policy pivot for the Dutch market and could reshape licensing, advertising and operator obligations. For operators, affiliates and compliance teams active in the Netherlands, this is a watch-and-act moment: new laws could mean licence renewals, tightened compliance demands and different commercial rules for marketing and player safety.
Why should I read this?
Want the short version? The Dutch are ripping up the rulebook and starting again — and that affects licenses, ads, player safety rules and how firms operate in the market. If you do business in the Netherlands or track European regulatory trends, this is proper news: it could change who can operate, how they market and what duties they have to players. We read it so you don’t have to — but you should pay attention.
Author note
Punchy take: this isn’t a tweak — it’s a rethink. Van Bruggen’s background in healthcare and vulnerability policy, plus cross-party backing, gives this overhaul real momentum. Expect substantive proposals on protection and enforcement rather than cosmetic fixes.
Source
Source: https://igamingexpert.com/regions/europe/claudia-van-bruggen-koa/