Alesse (Adm): '2024, the year of gaming and customs reforms'

The in-depth reform of the administrative organization and the valorisation of the body's human capital, the memorandum of understanding signed with the Guardia di Finanza, the establishment of the States General: these are some of the highlights of Roberto Alesse's first year as general director of the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (Customs and Monopolies Agency, editor's note), who in this extensive interview with GiocoNews takes stock and relaunches the commitments on the agenda for 2024, among which the reform of games and customs sectors certainly stands out, and the fight against illegal gaming will be increased thanks to the new resources acquired by the Agency's regional offices.

In January 2024, you completes one year as director of the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli. What is the assessment of these first 12 months?
“It is certainly a positive assessment of which I am proud. It has been a challenging and at the same time gratifying year, we have already done a lot and we will do much more in the coming months. The memorandum of understanding with the Italian Financial Police for the relaunch of our cooperation, the simplification of customs controls for the benefit of economic operators, the establishment of the States General for an even more open discussion with all stakeholders, who interact with the Agency are among the initiatives that I care about in particular.”

What reforms would you like to carry on in the various sectors of the Agency in the coming months?
“We are implementing the Tax Delegation by deeply reforming the games and customs sectors. After the European elections we will also review the matter of excises, especially concerning energy products. But, in the meantime, I proceeded to deeply reform the administrative organization of the Agency, starting from that of the central managements to arrive at the unification of all the regional offices, by merging the duties of customs with those of the monopolies. In 2024, I would like to focus on giving new impetus to the European integration process at the customs level. We need to update the new Union Code. A fascinating challenge which, I hope, will see our country as a protagonist."

Among your initiatives, from the internal reorganization of Adm to the creation of the event "The excellence of the Agenzia delle dogane e dei monopoli", a great attention to the human capital of the body appears. How important is employee development for you?
“Employees are the beating heart of our Agency. I have tried to enhance experience and competence, but also given more space to young people, who must be rewarded and encouraged in whatever field they engage in. We are a great reality, we demonstrated it a few weeks ago by organizing and managing the world customs Organization summit in Venice, an event with an international scope made possible only thanks to the synergy work that we have been able to implement. We worked, each in our own role, with each other, in an excellent way and for this I thank all the staff. The director must know how to give the right directions but it is teamwork that makes the difference and can lead to great results. We needs authority but also common sense and the ability to talk."

As already mentioned, with the approval of the tax reform we are talking again about the reorganization of public gaming, and we are now awaiting the relevant implementing decrees. What will be the Agency's contribution to implementing the reorganization?
“Most of our proposals have been included in the implementing decree for the reorganization of remote gaming, approved a few days ago by the Government in a preliminary phase, the others concern regulatory changes or regulations regarding devices, betting, controls and other games. The regulation of the sector is a very complicated matter, related to the different collection channels, taxation, which cannot be uniform between the different games, and the new technologies that lead to virtual realities. Therefore, in addition to being proponents, we will be careful actuators of the decisions that Parliament and the Government will adopt in the sector."

How will Adm's commitment to fight illegal gambling continue?

“The fight against illegal gambling is a priority for us, our commitment in this direction is strong and steady. It is our duty to protect the weakest sections of the population. This activity happens both through the analysis of gaming flows and through checks carried out on the physical network. In this sense, around 12,000 specific checks were carried out in 2023 and, also thanks to the sharing of these activities with the police, around 40 businesses were sanctioned with temporary closure. Adm's commitment will continue unchanged and, if possible, increased thanks to the new resources acquired from the Agency's regional offices."

Gaming operators without cash winnings ask to continue the discussion with the Adm to review the current technical rules as soon as possible and to arrive at an extension of the deadline for self-certifications. Do you think there is room for dialogue on these topics?
“The dialogue with the amusement sector is steady and the technical table has been reactivated with the associations representing the category, which will facilitate discussion on topics of interest. Furthermore, last December, the 19th, an extension of the transitional system was signed, which will allow the machines without winnings in cash to be kept in operation for another year on the basis of self-certifications of compliance with the technical requirements."