Ruth Evans has been appointed Chair of the UK Gambling Commission, ending an extended period in which the regulator operated without a permanent leader at board level.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy confirmed Evans’ appointment on 7 September. She will formally take up the position on 30 September 2026 and serve a five-year term. The role carries annual remuneration of £85,000 for a commitment of two days per week.
Evans succeeds Charles Counsell, who has served as Interim Chair since February 2025 following the departure of Marcus Boyle. Boyle had announced his decision to step down in November 2024 and left the position in January 2025.
The appointment gives the Gambling Commission permanent leadership at a significant point for British gambling regulation, with the regulator continuing to implement measures stemming from the government’s Gambling Act review while also strengthening its response to illegal gambling and reviewing its longer-term strategy.
Consumer protection experience shapes appointment
Evans arrives without a career background in the gambling industry but brings more than four decades of experience across regulation, consumer protection, public bodies and financial oversight.
She currently chairs Stop Scams UK, an organisation that brings together banks, technology businesses and telecommunications companies to combat fraud. Her previous positions include Chair of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, the body responsible for regulating MPs’ pay and expenses, and inaugural Chair of the Bar Standards Board.
Evans has also served as a lay member of the General Medical Council, including a period chairing its Standards and Ethics Committee, and as a Non-Executive Director of the Serious Fraud Office. In 2018, she led the steering group responsible for developing a voluntary banking industry code covering reimbursement for victims of authorised push payment scams. She has also recently been appointed Chair of the Criminal Legal Aid Advisory Board.
Her appointment makes her the Gambling Commission’s first female permanent Chair since the regulator assumed its full responsibilities under the Gambling Act framework in 2007.
Evans has indicated that collaboration between regulators, gambling companies and technology businesses will form an important part of her approach. Her priorities are expected to include stronger consumer safeguards, online safety and proportionate regulation while maintaining conditions for a sustainable regulated gambling market.
Leadership changes continue at the Commission
Evans joins the regulator during a broader restructuring of its senior leadership.
Former Chief Executive Andrew Rhodes left the Gambling Commission on 30 April 2026 after almost five years at the organisation. Deputy Chief Executive Sarah Gardner subsequently took responsibility as Acting Chief Executive while the regulator moved through its leadership transition.
Executive Director of Policy and Research Tim Miller is also due to leave in September after 10 years with the Commission. His responsibilities have included implementation of measures arising from the Gambling Act Review White Paper, including financial vulnerability checks, age-verification reforms, changes to remote game design and tighter controls on direct marketing.
The regulator has already strengthened its executive team elsewhere. Sue Young became Executive Director of Operations in March, while Sarah Fox is joining on secondment from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to lead policy, research and statistics functions as well as National Lottery regulation. Fox previously led DCMS’s Gambling and Lotteries team for four years.
Evans will therefore take over the Commission’s board as it manages both personnel changes and a substantial regulatory workload. Priorities include completing remaining reforms linked to the Gambling Act review, developing the Commission’s next strategy and increasing enforcement activity against illegal operators.