Rick Parry, the chief executive of Liverpool Football Club, has been appointed by Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to lead a new panel designed to uphold the integrity of sports betting.

Representatives from the gambling industry, the police, sports national governing bodies and the legal profession will also be included on the panel, as well as players, fans and the Gambling Commission, in a bid to address the risks facing the industry. The panel has been established to examine the current rules on sports betting and how suspicious betting patterns are identified and assessed, while also ensuring improved communication between those responsible for tackling betting corruption.

A series of recommendations to uphold the integrity of sports betting is expected to be presented to sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe within six months. Parry said: "Integrity and sport must go hand-in-hand and anything that threatens that bond of trust has to be stamped out. The panel assembled by Gerry Sutcliffe has a wealth of experience and knowledge and I am confident that we can build on the work already done to ensure we have the toughest approach to corruption."

Sutcliffe added: "We cannot be complacent and need to act now to prevent this becoming a real threat to the integrity of sport. There are some complex issues involved and this is by no means an easy task, but I have great confidence in the panel and I look forward to hearing the recommendations." Mark Davies, the managing director of Betfair; Ian Seabridge, assistant chief constable of Greater Manchester Police and the Association of Chief Police Officers' lead on gambling; and Gambling Commission director of regulation, Nick Tofiluk are among the figures appointed to the panel.