The Dutch consumer and markets authority ACM has criticised government plans to sell off the Holland Casino group, the NRC says on Wednesday.

Ministers agreed last year to split up and sell off its state-run casino monopoly Holland Casino. Ten of the 14 branches will be sold off under their current name while the other four locations will be sold as a group.

The cabinet is also planning to open up the casino market to new providers from 2017 – with two licences up for grabs.

The ACM welcomes the decision to break up the Holland Casino monopoly, saying that consumers will benefit from improved prices and quality. However, it questions whether the government is going far enough by giving a single company a 15-year contract to run 10 of the 16 Dutch casinos.

Nor is it clear which four branches will be sold off separately and what role Holland Casino itself will have in the decision, the ACM said.

In particular, the competition body said the government should consider reducing the number of casinos to be sold under the Holland Casino name and reducing the licence period to 10 years.

The draft legislation will soon be sent to the Council of State for its views.