In-game Purchases: Protections for Children

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Excerpts

Thursday 15th January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

This is about making sure that children are safe. The Government are committed to ensuring that games are enjoyed safely and responsibly by everyone, including children. The Government maintain the view that loot boxes should not be purchased by children, unless enabled by a parent or guardian, and that is our clear position. All players should have access to spending controls and transparent information. This is why we have funded detailed academic research into the implementation of loot box guidance, which, as I mentioned earlier, will be published in the near future.

[Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP)]

With quite a number of countries around the world having already banned loot boxes and quite a number of gamers having developed a resistance and an anger about them, some online commentary suggests that loot boxes are already on the way out. There is the next new thing, which is known as sweeps or sweepstakes, which involve buying coins for social gameplay. Then, engaged in that, there is a raffle-like or a slot-machine-like process that produces rewards. Are the Government aware of that? Are the Government looking at that? We know that the industry will react—if you just legislate against loot boxes, it will try and find something. Do we not need legislation that covers the whole thing of a gambling-like system set up in gaming?

[Baroness Twycross (Lab)]

The noble Baroness correctly identifies that sometimes our debate does not necessarily keep up with developments. One of the major protections we have in place is the Online Safety Act, which applies to online services that allow users to share content and interact with each other. As I have said in previous responses, the Government keep up to date with developments and keep all options under review.