By Adam Ulick | January 27, 2008

Antigua and Kahnawake were both recently found to be in incompliance with the UK’s “whitelisting” criteria, but after a successful meeting between the Antiguan Minister of Finance and officials from Great Britain Antigua the British may change their mind.

The Antiguan Minister of Finance, Dr. Errol Cort, has recently been involved in another dispute involving the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and Antigua’s recent WTO-approved sanctions against the United States. Now facing another challenge, Dr. Cort met with Britain’s Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe to discuss the whitelisting issue and returned with a feeling that Antigua’s chances of reversal seemed “favorable”.

Antigua will be anxiously waiting to hear Britain’s final response on the matter because if the decision is reversed, it will mean that online gambling companies operating from within Antigua will be accepted into the UK’s jurisdiction and will be allowed to advertise in that region.

“We are extremely encouraged by the reception we received from Minister Sutcliffe and his staff,” Minister Cort told the Antigua Sun after the conference.  
 
“I was happy to learn that very little stands in the way of our approval for whitelisting, and I think I can express confidence that this issue will be resolved favorably in the very near future,” Dr. Cort added.

The Antiguan delegation included the UK High Commissioner Dr. Carl Roberts, Deputy Administrator of the Financial Services Regulatory Commission Trevor Mathurin, Director of Gaming Kaye McDonald, Gaming Regulatory Consultant Alan Pedly and Legal Advisor Mark Mendel.

“We are acknowledged global leaders in the regulation of this industry,” McDonald said, “Our standards are the highest in the world and we view the whitelisting as important to demonstrate our commitment to the highest standards in the supervision and oversight of this dynamic industry.”

Minister Cort stated that he had assembled such a team in order to be sure that they would address the specifics of any shortcomings that Minister Sutcliffe may see in their Antigua’s regulatory system. He claimed at the end of his commentary to the Antiguan Sun that he felt that the mission was an unqualified success.

“This meeting shows what governments can accomplish by working cooperatively and openly to resolve issues between them. We appreciate Minister Sutcliffe’s interest in this matter and look forward to concluding this matter shortly.”

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